


Wasteland Messiah

by IrradiatedCutie



Category: Fallout 3
Genre: F/M, au where James doesn't die bc im in denial
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-11
Updated: 2016-07-15
Packaged: 2018-07-23 01:42:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 26
Words: 50,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7461648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IrradiatedCutie/pseuds/IrradiatedCutie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Capital Wasteland is a harsh land and Amelia is thrust out into without warning. Accompanied by Butch and her dog, she struggles to find her father and restore some kindness into the Wasteland while trying not to loose her good nature.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is so long ngl. It was my winning NaNoWriMo entry and spans 103 pages. It's in its raw, unedited form, save for grammar and spelling. It is seriously an au where James lives because I am truly in denial about his death. Please tell me what you think and thanks for reading!

Amelia was always eager to learn about her nation's history and the events that led up to her being born and raised inside of an underground nuclear bomb shelter called Vault 101. That curiosity led her to have an insatiable lust for the outside world. Sure, she knew it was probably barren and filled with radiation but she wanted to explore and see the sun and the people who lived out there but she was stuck inside the Vault, left to spend her years logging clinic information with her dad who was the Vault physician and Jonas his other assistant and bake cookies with her friends Suzie Mack and Amata and swoon over Butch DeLoria who may have been her childhood bully but he was now her teenage bad boy who left so many bruises on her neck that she couldn’t cover up all of them. 

She sat that night in the Vault, entering information into the terminal in the clinic office, her blue eyes straining to see the screen clearly. She sighed and sat back, rubbing her eyes and yawning. Looking at her Pip-Boy, she read the time as 11:42pm, way past time for her to be in bed. She saved her work on the terminal then went to go log off when she heard loud clatters and cursing. She stood and looked around for a weapon, finding a scalpel left out on one of the steel platters. With her legs shoulder length apart, she gripped the scalpel with both of her hands as the clinic door flew open and there stood Butch, his hand pressed against his side as blood slipped down his forehead. Amelia gasped and threw down her scalpel to rush over to him. He grinned and chuckled as she took his hand and led him to the examining table where he pulled himself up and sat. 

“Hey there, nosebleed.” He grinned before shuttering. She flipped on the examining light and pulled it over so the light flowed over his face. He had a busted lip, a large gash running from his right eyebrow down to the side of his chin and a couple of bloody knuckles. 

“Jesus, what happened to you, Butch?” She asked as she began to gather up supplies. Grabbing a steel tray, she wheeled it over and dumped out gauze, disinfectants and a few stimpaks onto its surface.

“I got into a fight with Wally and that bastard pulled a knife on me.” He coughed hard and flinched, wrapping an arm around his torso, “I think he fucking broke my ribs.” Butch choked out between raspy coughs. Amelia grabbed his chin and forced him to look at her before stabbing his cheek with the needle of a stimpak and pushing the lever. He groaned and tried to smack her hand away yet she stopped him mid swing with her free hand.

“Alright, take off your shirt.” She told him, setting down the empty stimpak and pulling on gloves. Butch grinned and winked at her. 

“Woah, I didn’t think you were like that, kitten.” He chuckled before coughing again and groaning. She rolled her eyes and pulled the zipper on the front of his Vault suit down to his belt then rolling down his sleeves carefully, trying to be mindful of any ribs that could have been broken. After stripping him of his undershirt, she applied pressure to his breastbone which earned her a gasp of pain and a flinch. 

“Which side did the pain come from?” She asked as she pulled the light down to his torso. 

“Left.” He muttered, his head down, a few loose bangs dusting his forehead as his eyes clenched shut and his eyebrows furrowed. Amelia nodded and ran her fingers up his left side, applying pressure every so often, causing more flinches and gasps. She finally stripped off her gloves and grabbed another stimpak and jabbing it into his side. 

“Enough with the fuckin’ needles.” He growled, glaring softly at her. She rolled her eyes once more before grabbing the bandages and disinfectant.

“You are such a big baby sometimes, Butch, you know that?” She questioned him, raising her eyebrows as she took one hand into hers, cleaning up his knuckles. 

“Yeah yeah, whatever.” He blew her off, rolling his own eyes for once. She shook her head and giggled, wrapping up his hand with the cloth. 

“So, what were you and Wally fighting about this time?” She questioned him some more, switching to his left hand. He looked down on her, noticing how much shorter she was as he sat atop the gurney, working away. 

“You. He was sayin’ some pretty vile shit so I clocked him one. Too bad for me the fucker had his switchblade on him.” He admitted as Amelia finished up bandaging his left hand. She looked up at him and shook her head, pursing her lips together. 

“You didn’t need to do that, y’know.” She told him as she put away the unused supplies.

“I know, but I wanted to.” He muttered, climbing down from the gurney. She sashayed back over to him and set her hands on his chest. 

“What am I going to do with you, Butch?” Amelia wondered, looking up at him and smiling. He chuckled and shrugged. 

“Kiss me or somethin’.” He leaned down and kissed her softly, running a bandaged hand through her hair while the other one found her hip. She ran her hands up and down his chest softly, trying not to provoke any pain from his ribs. He left her lips and trailed down her neck, nipping softly at her collar bone. She let out a soft yelp before pushing him away lightly. 

“Alright, down boy.” She chuckled, helping him put his vault suit back on. 

“You see what you do to, Amelia?” He panted softly as he zipped up the front of his suit, slicking back his hair. 

“You know how much trouble we’d get in?” Amelia raised an eyebrow at him which earned her the sight of Butch’s famous thousand watt grin. 

“Rules are meant to be broken.” He told her, leaning in for a kiss which she stopped mid way. 

“You always say that, Tunnel Snake. Now that you’re all patched up, we both need to head to bed, we both have work in the morning anyway.” Butch sighed before kissing her goodbye and making his way out of the clinic. Amelia yawned and stretched, looking at her Pip-Boy which read the time as 12:09am. Smiling softly and shaking her head, she turned off the examination light and headed for her apartment. She snuck into her bedroom, making sure not to wake her dad as she did so. Yawning once more, she flopped down onto her bed, not bothering to change out of her vault suit. She set her Pip-Boy to the Vault PA system and let the soft sounds of violin strings lull her to sleep. 

***

“Wake up! Come on, Amelia! Wake up!” She was abruptly woken up by Amata shaking and yelling at her as the sound of the Vault’s emergency alarms going off rang in her ears. She groggily rubbed her eyes and was pulled to her feet by her best friend. 

“Huh, what’s wrong, Amata?” She asked, still rubbing the crud out of her left eye and yawning. 

“You’ve got to get out of here! Your dad is gone and my father’s men are looking for you!” That woke her up immediately. Her eyes widened and she could feel her heart begin to pound against her chest. 

“What do you mean he’s gone?” She asked, her hands shaking as she clutched the front of her Vault suit. 

“Your dad somehow opened the main door and left the Vault! My father...I’ve never seen him so angry. Listen to me -- if the guards find you, they’ll kill you!” Amata frantically told her, her hair all astray, sweat and tears beading down her cheeks. 

“Jesus christ, I’ve never seen you so scared something else had to happen.” Amelia admitted, trying to keep her voice from cracking on her. More tears left Amata’s eyes and slipped down her cheeks

“It’s Jonas…they killed him! My father’s men. They took him and…Oh my god, you have to leave, now! ” She screamed at her, causing her to jump. 

That’s when it all changed. Amelia somehow kept herself calm as she gathered all of her things in a small bag on her back. Her journals, pictures, the extra medical gear she kept in her nightstand, the baseball bat from little league, the bb gun she had gotten on her 10th birthday and all of it’s ammo then Amata gave her a gun. It was a 10mm and only had a few rounds in it but it was cold and heavy in her hands and it brought a weighing feeling like lead into her stomach. She hugged Amata goodbye and made her escape. 

***

Bursting through the wooden door outside of the Vault tunnel, she screamed as her eyes met the sun. Collapsing instantly onto her knees, she dug her hands into the dirt, groaning and crying. Opening her eyes, she was met again with a bright light, seeing nothing but white. For a few moments, she screamed again, convinced she had been blinded before the whiteness faded and her sight adjusted. For years, she dreamed of leaving the Vault, seeing the world outside and seeing the sun but her dreams had not been like this. No, this was a nightmare, a living hell as far as she was concerned. Pulling herself to her feet, Amelia took a few steps out of the rock quarry and saw the ruined world she had read about for years. 

Everything was brown and dead but there was something beautiful about it. The sun beat heavy above her, the clouds swirling in the bright sky. In the distance she saw the wreckage of buildings and monuments built in years long since passed. For a few moments, she felt a lightness in her heart as she gazed out upon this new world in front of her, ready for her to explore. But within moments, that feeling left and was replaced with dread and worry. Taking out the gun she was given by Amata, she began to call for her dad as she traveled down a dirt path, following it to wherever it went.


	2. Chapter 2

The sun was high in the sky, beating heavy down on her head as Amelia finally saw a large structure in the distance. Relief filled her heart as she saw a working robot standing outside of it. She ran up to the gates of this large metal fence as well as she could with her bloody baseball bat in hand. 

“Wel-come to Mega-ton. En-joy your stay.” It greeted her as she pushed through the heavy steel gates. Inside she was filled with joy to find people walking by, talking with each other and giving her strange glances as they passed. She must have looked strange to these people with her Vault suit and Pip-Boy and her bloodied cheek and baseball bat didn’t help with the look. It didn’t matter to her, all that mattered was she found people who seemed friendly enough to not shoot her on sight. 

“Well, I’ll be damned. You’re from that vault! Vault 101! Ha ha! I ain’t seen one of those jumpsuits in a LONG time!” Amelia turned around quickly, coming face to face with a tall handsome black man with a bushy beard and a cowboy hat, a gun strapped to his back. She sighed in relief and drooped her shoulders, smiling at him. He smiled back and held out his hand which she graciously shook. 

“Name’s Lucas Simms, town sheriff. And mayor too, when the need arises.” He grinned, tipping the edge of his hat. She smiled back at him and tilted her head to the side. 

“Nice town you’ve got here, Sheriff. It’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m Amelia” She told him, trying to nonchalantly stick the bloody baseball bat in her hand in her bag. 

“Friendly AND well mannered? I think we’re gonna get along just fine. You treat my people nice, and you’re welcome to stay as long as you’d like.” He told her, folding his arms over his chest, keeping the grin on his face. Amelia nodded, successfully stowing away her bat. 

“Thanks, sheriff.” She bowed her head softly before running a hand over her scabbed over cheek. 

“Now, is there something I can help you with?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. Amelia’s eyes widened and her brain lit up white hot. 

“Yes, there is. I’m looking for my father. He’s got on the same vault suit, tall, middle aged. Maybe you’ve seen him?” She questioned, filled with hope that maybe her dad made his way here and they could go home. That hope was short lived. Lucas shook his head and sighed. 

“Nope, sorry. I got enough fires to put out in this place that I don’t have time to keep tabs on every visitor. I’d try asking around town.” He patted her shoulder, gave her one last flash of his smile and walked off. 

***

The sun was slowly starting to fall when Amelia made her way up to Moriarty's saloon. Inside, she found a man behind the counter who looked like a zombie from those old horror movies they’d show on Friday nights in the vault, a redheaded girl with a skimpy outfit with a cigarette hanging limply in between her lips and a few other people scattered around, drinking and eating. Behind the counter, she spotted a man with gray almost white hair and a beard walk by. She perked up and walked over to him, disregarding the hey’s and stop’s she got. The man turned around and smiled at her, looking her up and down from head to toe. 

“Colin Moriarty, at your service! Welcome to Moriarty’s! My saloon, my home, my slice of heaven in this backwoods little burg. If you’ve got the caps, I’ve got the pleasure. Please, sit down, make yourself comfortable. Your troubles are a thing of the past.” He smiled and crossed his arms. Amelia looked around and adjusted the bag on her back. 

“I’m Amelia...listen I don’t have any money...or caps...whatever. I’m just looking for my dad. Tall, middle aged, maybe you’ve seen him?” She asked, a hopeful look on her face. Moriarty gasped and his eyes widened. 

“My God... It's you. The little baby girl, all grown up. Persistent little flower, ain't ya? Then and now, it would seem. It's been a long time, kid.” He pulled her into a hug which she very hesitantly returned. He broke away and patted her shoulder softly, smiling sadly. “Oh, your daddy passed through here, all right. Here and gone. Got what he came for, and then left. I'm assuming you'll do the same, correct?” She pushed his hand off of her and took a few steps back, her own eyes wide, her eyebrows furrowed. 

“What the hell are you talking about? I was born in the vault. My dad was born in the vault…” She muttered, feeling like he was a madman although at this point, she probably looked like one. 

“Is that what your father told you? That you were born in that hole? That HE was born there as well? Oh, the lies we tell to those we love. Your father brought you to the Vault right after you were born. To keep you safe, you see. I remember it well -- you stayed in my saloon, after all. That's right. Your father, his Brotherhood of Steel friend, and you, the suckling babe with nary a tit to suckle. Sorry about your mom. Truly. But, life goes on. Daddy lied. Life's full of little disappointments. And now... you're all grown up, and wondering where he's gone to....” Amelia could feel the tears slipping down her dirty and cut cheeks, stinking as they seeped into the wound. She shook her head and clutched her chest. 

“My Dad told me we were born in Vault 101…” She could feel her heart pound, her stomach flip over on itself and threaten to empty what little contents it held. Moriarty laughed and shook his head. 

“Aaahhhh. I see. You know, I heard about the brainwashin' that goes on down there. From some other fella, escaped, oh... five years back. 'All hail the Overseer! We're born in the Vault; we die in the Vault!' And all that other assorted lunacy. Kid, you've got better programming than our own Deputy Weld. You'd best wise up quick. Wouldn't want anyone... takin' advantage of ya. Hmm?” He grinned and chuckled lowly. Amelia snapped her head up and wiped away the tears before faking a laugh that was more genuine sounding than her real laugh. Smacking her knee, she laughed some more and wiped away the tears from her eyes as if they were caused by humor. 

“I’m kidding! Of course, I knew that! Dad talked about you all the time, Colin. Now, do you know where he is?” She asked him, tilting her head and smiling like everything was all fine and dandy. Luckily for her, Moriarty bought it. 

“Did he? Well, our time together was brief, but... that is the way of it out here. When a bond is forged, little else matters, hmm? Well, he did come through here, but he left. I'm truly sorry. But maybe you can catch up to him? He headed southeast, into the city. Said he needed information from those loonies at the station. You know, Galaxy News Radio, what there is of it.” 

***

That night she rented a room in the saloon, ate some food from the kitchen that tasted like oil and dirt and learned about her new world. She talked to the man behind the counter who was named Gob. He was a ghoul, a type of person who has survived extreme radiation exposure and hasn’t died. Despite his horrid appearance, he was nice, funny and Amelia liked him to which the feeling was mutual. She also talked to Nova and felt very uncomfortable as she offered to show her a thing or two and with that “pretty clean face” of hers, she would be rich in no time. She passed that offer up and soon went to bed. The room was tiny, dusty and barren. It held a bed, a table with single wooden chair and a small nightstand. 

Sighing, Amelia kicked off her shoes and slung her bag down on the ground and flopped on the bed. The pillow was hard and no blanket was in sight but it was going to have to do. Sitting back up, she rummaged through her bag and pulled out a leather jacket. It was worn and heavy with a snake painted on the back and the words “Tunnel Snake” etched on. When she was leaving the vault, she saw Butch who had begged her not to go and when he couldn’t convince her, he took off his jacket, gave it to her and kissed her one last time. Taking off her Pip-Boy, she set it to that radio station, Galaxy News Radio before putting it on the nightstand. 

With the jacket wrapped around her, she laid down and let herself cry. She cried, her throat achy and her nose runny as she thought of her escape from the vault. She left not even 12 hours ago but it felt like a lifetime had passed. She cried for Jonas who was now dead and gone, his smile and his jokes absent from the vault. She cried for Amata who had to be devastated and horrified at what would happen to her. She cried for Butch who she was hoping to spend the rest of her life with and would now never see again. She cried for Suzie, Wally, Freddy, and Pauly. Most of all, she cried for her dad and a home she would never see again. The music on her Pip-Boy faded out and a voice echoed through it which caused her to furrow her eyebrows and sit up, listening to the report intently. 

“Because one dog ain't enough, and two is too low, it's me, Three Dog! How you kids handlin' Post-Apocalyptia today? New’s time, children! For those of you not in the know, to the north west of Megaton there's this vault. Vault 101. Now, believe it or not, this one's still got people livin' in it! And every few years or so, someone comes scrabblin' out. Well wouldn't you know it, someone's come out of it again! And, I kid you not, he came to visit yours truly right here in the studio! Now, this cat, James is his name, had been in a hole for years! He needed to know what was what out here in the beautiful Capital Wasteland! So I, the great and powerful Three Dog, set my brother straight. I told him what was what. Who are the winners, the losers, the movers and shakers. So if you see James out there, you say hello. Be kind to our new brother, and show him that here on the outside, we always fight the good fight. Hey, and in case a light bulb just started glowin' over your head, you can flick the switch and forget about it. You're not getting into that vault. Whoever lives in there sure as hell doesn't want what you're selling, and no, you can't knock down the door. It weighs like 13 tons. Now, some music, this is The Ink Spots, with their timeless classic, I Don’t Want To Set The World On Fire. ” 

With that the voice cut out and Amelia was left alone with the sound of music and her own thoughts. Her dad was out there, alive and well. A spark lit inside of her and suddenly she realized she needed to get to Galaxy News Radio but she needed a lot before she could even think about leaving Megaton.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Amelia cries a lot throughout this she's a sensitive soul ok


	3. Chapter 3

It had been almost 2 weeks since Amelia was thrusted out into the Wasteland, her blue eyes blinded by the sun. Despite her anxiety of being out in the big, bad, Wasteland for the first few days, she had already learned the ins and outs of the Wasteland culture and was beginning to make a name for herself. She saved Megaton from an evil man trying to blow it up, disarmed the atomic bomb in the center of town, fixed the leaks in the water pipes, helped Moria with her book and much more. All of this had traveled to Three Dog and she was now the talk of the Wasteland. Whenever he cut on and raved over what new thing she had accomplished, Amelia hoped her father was out there, listening about the great things she was doing out here in the Wasteland. Although, if she wasn’t helping around town, she was in the little house she got from Lucas, weary of going anywhere besides the surrounding abandoned town and Super Duper Mart. She wound linger inside the house, tinkering with her guns and other weapons, talking to Wadsworth and listening to GNR to find some type of solace out here. 

That morning was like any other with her waking up, chatting with her robot and getting ready to head down to the Brass Lantern for breakfast but with a bit of a twist. Today was finally the day she was going to travel into downtown D.C. to find GNR Studio to try and track down her dad. Pulling on her boots, she grabbed Butch’s leather jacket and her bag from the corner and began packing. As she holstered her 10mm and stuffed her bag with supplies, Three Dog switched on. 

“Hey nifty America, it’s me, your President, John Hen--- Ahah! Gotcha ya! Three Dog here! How’s everyone doin’?” Amelia smiled as she threw med-x and stimpaks into her bag with ammo, water and backup weapon’s she’d bought and raided off of people. 

“Now, a while ago I told you kiddies about how some cat had recently left Vault 101. His name was James, good guy. And then I told ya’ll about another vault dweller that crawled outta there right after he did and is slowly becoming our Wasteland Defender and my favourite person in the world. And now! I’ve got reports that a third person came outta that hole and has just reached Megaton overnight. So what the hell is goin’ on down there? Revolution? Vacation? Somebody fart? Your guess is as good as mine children.” 

She stopped dead in her tracks, her hand hovering over the handle to her front door. Anxiety festered in her chest as she mulled over what she had just heard. Someone else had escaped the Vault and was here, in Megaton, with her. Did they know she was here? Were they looking for her? If so, why? With a sinking heart, she adjusted her bag and sprinted to Moriarty’s Saloon. 

Bursting in through the doors, she panted heavy and everyone took a few seconds to glance at her before going back to their much important matters. With a quick scan around the room her eyes settled on Gob and the muscular figure in the Vault 101 jumpsuit sitting at the counter. It took her a few moments before her eyes widened and her heart leapt with joy. 

“Butch?” 

Swiveling around in his chair, Butch gave her that signature shit-eating grin of his and slicked back his hair. He was covered in a thin layer of dirt and a few cuts and scrapes but he looked in much better condition that she did when she left the vault. 

“Hey, Nosebleed.” He kicked up off his chair and took a few steps before he was standing in front of her, towering over her. She just stared up in awe for a couple of seconds before throwing herself in his arms and letting the tears flow. He wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair softly, swaying softly as she cried into his dirty vault suit. 

“I’ve missed you so much, oh gods.” She muttered into his chest, sniffling. He pulled back and cupped her almost healed cheek and smiled. 

“Who wouldn’t miss this pretty face?”

***

She brought Butch back to her house at the front of the town, patched him and listened to him tell her how awful the Vault was. Apparently after she had left, the Overseer went ballistic and everyone suffered from his tyranny. He said he couldn’t take it and left in the dead of the night and no one even tried to stop him. She kissed him hard and long, not wanting to let go of him, still convinced his arrival was a dream and that she was going to wake up any moment. Luckily, she didn’t. He was really there, hair gel, switchblade and all. She sat on his lap with his arms snaked around her waist and for the first time since she left the vault she was happy. Then she remembered her mission for the day. 

“Listen, Butch, I have to leave.” She said, crawling off of his lap and pulling her boots back on. He sat up, slicking back his hair. 

“What do you mean you’re leaving? I just got here.” He furrowed his brow and frowned as she holstered her gun and grabbed her bag.

“I’m traveling into downtown D.C. and it’s really dangerous.” She told him, setting her hands on her hips, staring at him sitting on the couch in the middle of her house. He just laughed and stood up, walking over to her. 

“Danger? I laugh in the face of danger.” He grinned, setting his hands on her hips. 

***

It took them what seemed like forever to Amelia to just get into the city and by the time they were over the Potomac, night had already fallen. They found an old abandoned shack free of raiders and radroaches where they set up for the night. The inside held a dusty table, an old mattress and a dented metal box. 

“Alright, I’ll take the first watch.” Amelia said, throwing her bag onto the ground and pulling out Butch’s leather jacket. Slipping it on, she pulled out her gun and propped herself up on the old table. She looked over and spotted Butch staring at her, dumbfounded, mouth gaping open and eyes widened. 

“You...kept it?” He asked her, bewildered and awestruck. She sat there confused for a few moments before realizing he meant the jacket. With pink cheeks, she nodded and sighed. 

“Yeah, I didn’t think I was gonna ever see you again so of course I kept it.” She told him, shrugging and swinging her feet softly. He grinned and walked over to her, setting his hands on her hips and kissing her forehead. 

“Well, here I am. I ain’t gonna leave you, Nosebleed.” He muttered against her skin, running his palms up her sides. Smiling, she kissed his chin before directing him to the bed across the small room. 

“You need your sleep, Butch.” She told him, pushing him away softly. 

“You’re the one who needs sleep, kitten.” Slicking back his hair, Butch tried to pull her off the table to which she pushed him away a bit harder. 

“I said go to bed.” Forcefully, she crossed her arms over her chest and furrowed her eyebrows. Huffing loudly, Butch threw down his own bag and dragged himself over to the bed, flopping down and sighing. Within what seemed like seconds, he was fast asleep, snoring and looking peacefully at ease. There was something about Butch where in his waking moments he never looked calm. He was either completely jovial or hot tempered but as he slept, bliss fell upon his face. Sighing, Amelia ran a hand down her face before flicking her Pip-Boy to GNR and leaning up against the wall as she stared into the dark night outside the doorway. Slowly, Amelia started to drift asleep, her eyes drooping and her breath slowing. Just as she fell into oblivion, an Eyebot came floating by, blasting it’s patriotic tunes and scaring her awake. She woke with a yelp and a jump, her hands flying to her gun. Butch also woke, rocketing up and grabbing his switchblade. 

“What? What happened? Are you hurt?” He frantically questioned, his eyes not completely void of sleep but filled with worry. Leaning back, Amelia set down her gun and slumped her shoulders over. 

“I’m fine, I just got startled, that’s all.” She told him, yawning and rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. Butch stood up and walked over to her, sitting down on the same rickety wooden table. 

“You really need your sleep, Amelia.” He told her, fiddling with his switchblade. “You look beat and you need your rest more than I do.” She didn’t argue with him this time, instead she just nodded and slid off the table. Stumbling over to the mattress, she flopped down and yawned, warm inside of Butch’s jacket as she slowly drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not to toot my own horn but, I can write a pretty good Three Dog. You'll see later on in the fic.


	4. Chapter 4

It wasn’t even mid-day and Amelia was already tired. With a growling stomach and pounding head, the pain in her shoulders from the heft of her bag seemed to be multiplied by a thousand. Stopping dead in her tracks, she crossed over to one of the stone guard rails that crept up the middle of the highway. Leaning against it, she slung off her bag into her lap and began rummaging through it.

“Hey Nosebleed! What’s the hold up?” Butch called back at her, waving his arms up in the air. Looking up at him, she dove back into her bag, moving around pill bottles and ammo cases before pulling out spare 10mm she had with her. Butch stood in front of her, casting a shadow across her as she loaded the gun with ammo before taking his wrist in her hand and setting the cold steel in his palm. 

“Here, I thought you’d like something more than that switchblade of yours.” He nodded and held it in his hand loosely as he leaned up against the guard rail next to her. Shielding her eyes from the blazing sun with her palm, Amelia gazed out upon the ruined buildings and rubble that marked her path into the heart of the DC ruins. Within the hour they would be to GNR and she could continue on her quest to find her dad. 

“Say, why did the old man leave you anyway?” Butch broke the silence between them his eyes locked on her face. She glanced over at him and shrugged, letting out a heavy sigh. He dropped the subject and went quiet, restoring the lack of talking between the two. 

Amelia sat there in deep thought over her father’s sudden abandonment when the first bullet whizzed by her head. Within seconds she shot up and twisted around, her eyes locking on two raiders heavily armed running towards them. 

“Butch! Get down!” Screaming at him, she dropped to her knees and pulled him down with her. They weren’t quick enough. A casing landed a few feet away and red leaked out of a gash in Butch’s left arm. He groaned obscenities while she pulled out her 10mm, peeking her head over the guardrail to try and fire a few rounds into each of the raider’s chests. The last gun shot rang in the air, leaving all silent for a few seconds before Butch blurted out another curse. 

“Fucking shit!” She turned to find him with his knees pulled to his chest, his free hand clutched around his arm, his fingers thick and sticky with blood. 

“It’s okay! I can fix it, I can fix it.” Muttering to herself, she rummaged through the bag with shaky hands, pulling out a stimpak and whiskey. Digging into his pockets, she clutched his switchblade and sliced off one of the fabric straps to the bag she had. 

“Just hurry the fuck up, okay?” He forced out through clenched teeth. Nodding, she crawled over to his side with all of her make shift supplies. Trying to keep herself calm was the biggest part. She had fixed a thousand wounds a thousand times back in the Vault, half of them way worse than this. It was no different than back then, she reminded herself. Zipping his Vault suit down, she peeled away his sleeve, taking some blood with it. With her teeth, she opened up the whiskey bottle and poured a generous amount over the wound. 

“Ow! Fucking quit it!” He snapped, pushing her away and attempting to clamp his hand back over the wound. She pulled away and poured out more whiskey. 

“Shit, you’re making it worse!” He pulled away to which she countered, both physically and verbally. 

“Knock it off, Butch! I know what I’m doing so just chill the fuck out!” She snarled at him, her eyes dark and angry as she stabbed the needle of the stimpak into his arm. For once in his life, Butch listened. He lowered his eyes and stayed silent as Amelia wrapped the makeshift bandage around the already healing gash. Pulling his suit back up, she kissed his cheek and threw everything back in her bag. 

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have yelled but you can be such a stubborn jackass sometimes, even when I’m trying to help.” She admitted to him as she hopped over the guardrail and began to loot the dead and bleeding raiders. 

“Yeah, alright, I’m sorry or whatever.” He muttered as Amelia stuffed ammo and a cigarette pack into her bag. Once done with her loot, she slung her bag over one shoulder and smiled. 

“Let’s continue on our way then, shall we?” 

***

They had to fight through giant hulking yellow monsters called Super Mutants with a bunch of people dressed in Power Armor who called themselves the Brotherhood of Steel. With them leading in front, they were at Galaxy New Radio in no time and when the smoke had cleared, they were let inside. Led up the stairs and to a door, they were met by the one and only Three Dog who was more than ecstatic to see the two of them. Amelia’s heart pounded against her ribs while she talked to Three Dog about her father. He was nice enough to them and was willing to help her find her dad, but for a price. She had to help the Good Fight before he told her anything. So she had to accept his crazy request for her to travel to the Museum of Technology to get a radio dish to put on top of the Washington Monument. Now, she sat outside on the crumbling stone steps, bullet casings and blood splatters at her feet with Butch at her side. She stared out into the Plaza that was littered with the bodies and blood of Super Mutants and 2 Brotherhood soldiers. 

“God fucking damn it!” She screeched, jolting up as she clutched a piece of concrete before throwing it as hard as she could. It bounced off the chest of a Mutie and then lodged itself into the leg of another one. She breathed heavy for a few moments before sitting back down and burying her face into her palms. Butch set his hand on her back, rubbing up and down her spine. 

“Hey, we’ll find your dad, I promise.” He told her in all sincerity. It wasn’t long before Amelia began to choke out sobs, her fists wrapping themselves up in her bangs, her cheeks flooding with tears which fell off of her chin and stained her pants in large spots. Butch could feel his heart sink as he watched the person he loved the most become so utterly destroyed. 

“I just want my fucking dad back and no one is willing to give me that. All they want is to take advantage of me and I’m letting them just because I want to see my god damn dad.” Cried out between sobs, Amelia sniffled as Butch clutched her shoulder. She went silent after a few moments except for her sniffles. Then after what seemed like an eternity, she shakily stood and grabbed her gun, letting it hang limply between her pale fingers. 

“Let’s get back to Megaton.” 

***

The worn leather of the deflated couch inside of Amelia’s house in Megaton was ripped and smelly but no velvet or satin had ever felt so fine to her tired being, She buried her face into the half destroyed pillow and sighed deeply. Butch lifted up her legs and sat them in his lap, setting his hand on her back of her thighs. Opening his mouth to say something, Butch was immediately hushed as Amelia shot up into a sitting position, her eyebrows furrowed as she heard Three Dog switch on. 

“Oooh boy! Children, you are gonna love this! Okay, so I told you about James, the guy from the vault. Then I told you two other people crawled out of the vault within a couple of weeks of each other. Right. Weeeeeeell…Guess who came to visit ol’ Three Dog, at his luxurious studio in beautiful downtown D.C? That’s right - the other two Vault Dwellers. Now, you want to know if it gets better, don't you? Well Hell YES it gets better! Turns out Vault dweller number two, was none other than James' kid and the other, well, I don’t know but he seemed pretty close to her.” Butch and Amelia looked at each other, Butch winking at her and grinning. Her cheeks turned pink as she focused back on her Pip-Boy. 

“I know, I know! I couldn't make this shit up! Okay, but, now it gets kind of sad. You see, the first kid is looking for her dad, looking for James. See, James left Vault 101 without telling the kid why. Now, I've since learned that James is a scientist and is working on something big. Is that why he left the Vault? Looks that way. So who knows, maybe James is going to save the world. Can't think of a better cause than that. But James, if you're listening... Your kid's out, man, and she misses you. So you might want to find her and her boyfriend before they get swallowed up and spit out. And for all you other cats out there listening, if you see the kids from Vault 101 out there, give them a pat on the back, and wish them luck.” And just like that the music cut back on. Amelia looked over at Butch, both of their jaws hung slack in disbelief. They sat in silence for a few moments before Amelia stood abruptly. 

“We...we should get to bed...we have to go get that satellite dish in a day or two.” She muttered, shuffling her feet. Butch nodded and stood, towering over her. Brushing her bangs off of her forehead, he planted a soft kiss on her head. 

“We’ll find your dad soon, Nosebleed, I promise.” He reassured her, his lips still pressed against her skin. She broke away and nodded. 

“I hope we do…” She flashed a soft smile then headed upstairs, leaving Butch with furrowed eyebrows and a frown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even as a tiny little new wastelander, Amelia knows when she's being used but she still agrees to do things for people....she's sometimes too nice...


	5. Chapter 5

They set out that morning with stomachs filled with 200 year old mac and cheese, hearts filled with hope and bags filled with ammo and enough grenades to level a building, By the time they had found the Virgo II Lander, they were both bloodied, tired and covered in dust. When the last Super Mutant crashed to the ground, each of them stood, stuffing away unused grenades and cracking limbs to quell their ache. 

“Alright, let’s go get that dish.” Amelia said, cracking her back before leaping over the guardrail and landing on the first level safety. Butch followed suit but took the stairs. Dusting her hands off on her pants, she strutted up to the Virgo II Lander, gazing up at it in awe. She took a few moments, rattling ideas around in her head before turning to Butch. 

“Put me on your shoulders.” She stated blatantly, throwing her bag down. He looked at her with a vacant stare for a few moments before bursting out into laughter. 

“What, are you fucking nuts? No way in hell.” He retorted, crossing his arms over his chest defensively. Amelia frowned and walked up to him, standing so close she could feel his angry breath on her face. With a slender finger, she jabbed his chest with each word that came out of her mouth. 

“Butch DeLoria, you put me on your goddamn shoulders this instant or you’re gonna think you have a Super Mutant for a girlfriend.” With that, Butch threw off his bag and dropped to his knees. She smiled and cheerfully thanked him as she climbed atop his shoulders. With a tight, death like grip on her thighs, Butch slowly stood and took slow steps towards the Lander. Clamping her hands around the dish, she shook it a few times but it did not budge. 

“Butch, give me your switchblade.” She looked down as he sighed, taking one hand off of her thigh and plunging it into his pocket. He passed it up and she went to work unscrewing the dish. 

“See, this isn’t so bad.” She exclaimed, letting screws drop to the ground.

“Yeah yeah, whatever.” He muttered, rolling his eyes, keeping a tight grip on her thighs. It took a few moments of fiddling before the dish came loose and disconnected from the lander. 

“Got it!” Amelia squealed, holding it in her shaky hands. Butch lowered down to his knees as she crawled off his shoulders. Pulling rope out of her bag, she secured the dish to Butch's back. 

"Off the the Washington Monument we go." She chimed, grinning from ear to ear 

***  
The sun was slipping below the horizon just as she secured the dish to the top of the monument. Amelia crawled down and sighed, happy with her work. A Knight thanked her for her help with the Good Fight and offered them a room for the night. They both graciously accepted his offer. The room they were granted held a bed, a desk with a locked terminal and a broken metal locker. 

Butch sighed and dropped his bag before dive bombing onto the bed. Amelia was more graceful with her movements as she unpacked and stripped of her heavy load. She kicked off her boots then joined him on the bed, resting her head on his chest that slowly rose and fell with each breath. She muttered a half conscious goodnight and almost immediately dozed off, the sounds of his gentle heartbeat lulling her to sleep. Butch absentmindedly rubbed his hand up and down her back as soft music floated from both of their Pip-Boy’s and distracted him from his thoughts long enough to fall asleep as well.

***  
Amelia was always the first one awake in the vault despite usually being the last one up. She spent so many dark nights hunched over a glowing terminal in the medical lab, working and organizing that she didn’t go to bed until the vault was so dark and quiet that she could hear the quiet hum of her Pip-Boy working. And yet, she was the first one awake. Always up early, preparing for the day and that didn’t stop now that she was out in the Wasteland. Sure, the late nighters had died as soon as she was thrust out the door but the rising before the sun was something that was never going to stop. Her Pip-Boy read the time as 9:07am and she had already been working her butt off. She helped clean some old empty bedrooms, fix the armor of some Knights and Paladins and even scrubbed some of the grime off of her body. 

Butch, on the other hand, was still deeply asleep with his hair tousled and his snoring raging louder than she had ever heard before. She had gotten so tired of waiting for him and this was the third time she was flicking through the notes on her Pip-Boy. Running a hand down her face she leaned forward in her chair, resting her elbows on her knees. 

“Butch, wake up.” She yelled loudly, only getting a grunt in response. She tried three more times only to earn herself the same reaction. With an exasperated sigh, she pulled herself from her chair and dragged herself to the edge of the bed. 

“Butch, it’s time to wake up.” She whined, poking his chest. Butch responded with not just only a grunt but a few moments of furrowed eyebrows before returning to his neutral look. Finally fed up, she crawled onto the bed and straddled his hips. She smacked each of his cheeks and pulled on his arms to no avail. She groaned and pulled the front of his shirt and got right in his face. 

“Up and at ‘em, Tunnel Snake!” She yelled at him before letting go of him. He jolted awake and immediately reached for his gun before he realized the situation in front of him. When he did, he grinned and ran his hands up her sides, holding onto her hips. 

“Ah man, I’ve had this dream before and know exactly how it goes.” He chuckled and began to sit up. Amelia’s face ran beet red and jumped off of his lap. Butch laughed and swung his feet over the side of the bed, slicking back his hair. 

“Come on, Nosebleed, it’s not like we haven’t done all that stuff before.” He told her, climbing to his feet and wrapping his arms around her. She wiggled out of his grip, crossing her arms over her chest and frowning at him. He rolled his eyes and chuckled, shaking his head at her. 

“Alright alright, I’ll drop it. Now, what’s the plan for today?” He asked, holstering his gun and pulling on his boots. Amelia sighed, slinging her bag over her shoulder. 

“I don’t know, we go back to Three Dog and go off of whatever he tells me about my dad.” She shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest and tapping the toe of her boot against the ground. 

“Well, let’s not waste any more time then, Nosebleed.”


	6. Chapter 6

They were on their way to Rivet City, Amelia’s hopes sky high. She clutched a photo of her and her father from her 10th birthday against her chest the entire time they traveled towards the floating city. They arrived to the rusted tub and Amelia went skittering off to the science lab as Butch booked them a bedroom at the Weatherly Hotel. 

Her enthusiasm didn’t last long, much to Butch’s surprise and disappointment. When he found her in the lab, she was clutching her photo as Doctor Li let her down in a less than nice way. Butch witnessed as Amelia’s hope melted away and she began to cry in front of this women she had met not even five minutes ago. Butch thanked the doctor for her help and led a sobbing Amelia back to their room at the hotel. 

He took her bag off of her shoulders and unhooked her guns as she sat in the edge of the bed, her eyes streaming with tears. Butch unpacked the both of them, pulling out food and water for their dinner before beginning to prepare the 200 year old salisbury steak. By the time he had made plates for the both of them, Amelia's eyes had dried as she stared off into space with tear tracks lining her cheeks. 

"What did that Li lady tell ya, Nosebleed?" He asked, handing her a plate which she just started at. 

"That my dad’s gone...that he's going to finish him and my mother’s life project." She poked at the meat on her plate and sighed. Butch swallowed his mouthful of food, his eyes widening. 

"That's why he left you? To finish some stupid fucking experiment?" He gritted through his teeth, anger rising in his chest. 

"It's not some stupid fucking experiment, Butch, it's what his whole life is dedicated to." Amelia snapped at him, her eyes hard as she stared him down. He lowered his head in apology and nodded. 

"What's...uh....what's the project?" He asked as he shoved another large bite of steak into his mouth. Amelia set her own plate aside and stood, taking a few steps away together her thoughts. She stayed quiet for a while, allowing Butch to finish his meal. She finally spoke up as he chugged down his water. 

"Revelations 21:6. I am Alpha and Omega, I am the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life, freely." She spoke clearly and confidentially. She knew that bible verse from heart, a copy sat at her father’s desk back at the vault, in their living quarters and in each of their rooms. It had been her mother’s favorite verse when she was alive. Amelia turned and faced Butch. 

"My father is going to restore clean water to the Wasteland."

***

The Jefferson Memorial was within sights of Rivet City which comforted Amelia only slightly. What little comfort she had was distinguished when she looked through the scope of her .44 Magnum and saw the outside of the memorial swarming with Super Mutants.

They still made they're way to the memorial, throwing grenades as soon as the first yellow monster was spotted. The ones outside the memorial were easy, the ones inside were defended by turrets and were more quiet. It took more than a few grenades and bullet casings to get rid of these ones but they eventually fell victim to bodies pumped full of lead. 

After the hulking beasts were extinguished, the scavenger hunt for information began. Amelia left nothing untouched. She hacked every terminal, rummaged through every box and unlocked every desk to find something that would tell her where her father was. An hour later and she had gathered every holotape the place held, 13 of them in all. 

Her and Butch sat in the Rotunda with backs pressed against the giant case that held water around the crumbling statue of Thomas Jefferson. One by one she played the tapes, slowly learning of her father’s life work and how he felt he had almost cracked the code he just needed something else to get it all working. The second to last tape revealed what she was hoping for the most. The location of her father was Vault 112, where he went in hopes to find a G.E.C.K which would get the purifier to finally work. 

“Well, we should head to Vault 112 then. “ Butch stood and cracked his back, grabbing his bag and before looking back at Amelia who sat staring at the last holotape in her trembling hands. “The hell you waitin’ for Nosebleed? Let’s go.” He nagged at her, sighing heavily. She held up her free hand to silence him before loading up the final holotape and pressing play. 

“That batch of tests was inconclusive, but Madison and I are convinced it's a problem with the secondary filtration system. We're going to re-calibrate the equipment and try again tomorrow, so that... James, please, I'm trying to work. Now's not the time... So that's the next step. Assuming we get the results we need, we'll move on to... James! Stop! I need to finish these notes... We'll move on to diagnosing the issues with the radiation dampeners. That should... Ow! James! Now? We really shouldn't... Ha ha ha ha ha!“

Within 40 seconds the tape ended, leaving the two of them in silence. It took a few seconds, then the impact of the tape hit. Amelia began sobbing uncontrollably, tears flooding her cheeks as she let out pathetic sobs and buried her head in her knees. The voice on the tape was that of the mother she never got to meet. She sounded so happy, so hopeful, so brilliant. Butch felt a twinge of pain echo in his heart as he understanded the tape as well. He sighed and sat down next to Amelia, wrapping his arms around her and letting her sob into his shirt. She fell silent and stayed that way for what seemed like eons. 

“Y’know Nosebleed, by now I woulda thought you’d ran outta tears.” Butch chuckled, rubbing his hand up and down her back. Amelia let out a small giggle and looked up at him with a soft smile. She broke away and dried her eyes with the heel of her hand. Sniffling, she stuffed all the holotapes into her bag before standing up and grabbing her guns. 

“Let’s head out then.” 

***

The journey to Vault 112 was unlike any other for them at this point. This was the farthest they strayed from D.C and it was 10 different types of horrifying and hellish. They set up camp as soon as the sun began to set and were back on their feet before the sun rose. The nights were peaceful enough to quell their paranoia but did nothing to stop Amelia's heart ache. During the day she had to focus on not getting her head blown off by raiders or mutants but at night she was free to delve into her no longer repressed thoughts. This amplified her longing for her lost father. After dinner was done she would crawl into the safety of her bed roll, covered with Butch's jacket and dream about her childhood. When her watch came around, she would stare off into the darkness of the Wasteland, playing the tapes they had found in the Jefferson Memorial. 

Even though she missed her father more and more as the nights pressed on, she was certain they would find him inside the unknown Vault 112. Until Butch voiced his concerns one night.

They were sitting around the fire, tearing meat off the limbs of a roasted mole rat, Galaxy News Radio blasting from Amelia's pip boy. They ate in silence, tired and dirty from their day of fighting. 

"Hey, Amelia,"Butch spoke up, throwing the bare leg bone of the mole rat into the fire. Amelia looked up and locked eyes with him, her rat leg only halfway finished. "What if your dad's not there?" He asked, eyebrows furrowed.

She stopped mid bite and the look on her face told him one thing: he had just devastated her by bringing up the one thing she hadn't thought of. Amelia lowered her head and threw down her food into the fire, letting it burn. She rolled out her bedroll and fell asleep almost instantly. When time came to switch, she sat awake, listening to the same tape of her mother, over and over again as she sobbed into Butch's jacket. 

The sun was high in the sky as they traveled along the broken asphalt, Butch smoking a cigarette. Amelia finally broke the silence as they stopped to rest. 

"If he's not in Vault 112 then oh well." She said as they leaned up against a guard rail. Butch looked at her as he took a long drag. 

"I'll search all over this Wasteland from East to West coast if it means I'll find him." She told him as she stared off into the distance. Butch nodded and dropped the burning bud, crushing it with the toe of his boot. 


	7. Chapter 7

Vault 112’s experiment was virtual reality. Luckily for Butch and Amelia, one of the residence never showed up, leaving an empty pod for one of them. They spent a good 10 minutes fighting about who should be the one to go in until Amelia climbed in and shut the pod, leaving Butch to bang on the sides and yell at her. He stood watch for almost an hour as the pods hummed with power, showing the true long term power of the Vaults. This one has been running from the day the bombs fell to now, 200 years later. 

What felt like a lifetime later, all of the pods opened, smoke wafting from them. Amelia climbed out of her pod on shaky legs, nearly collapsing as she hit the ground. Butch held her upright as she caught her breath and steadied herself.

"Woah, go easy there, Nosebleed." He warned her as she stabilized herself on knees that still threatened to buckle under her. 

"Amelia." She looked up and her eyes went wide. There. on the other side of the room was her father. She shoved Butch away as she ran on weak legs to embrace her father. 

"Dad." Was all she could manage to choke out as she hugged him as hard as she could, tears streaming down her face. When they broke away, the look on their faces was a type of joy and relief Butch had never seen before in his life and probably something he would never see again. 

“Amelia…you saved me. I was afraid I was going to be trapped in there forever.” He smiled proudly at her, setting his hands on her shoulders. "But what are you doing here? And with Butch?" He furrowed his eyebrows in his signature way, giving her a look she always got when he was worried about her in any way, shape or form. She dried her eyes and wiped away the tears on her cheeks before smiling. 

“I came out here to find you and Butch has been quiet helpful, surprisingly.” She said, giggling as Butch joined the two, rolling his eyes. 

“Well, I’m glad you two did. This certainly wasn’t how I expected things to turn out. I wasn’t ready for Braun, or I might have fared better.” He told them, crossing his arms over his chest and sighing disappointedly. 

“What, you didn’t enjoying being a dog?” She giggled, grinning from ear to ear. Her dad chuckled and shook his head. 

“Well, I suppose it had it’s moments but in the end, I much rather prefer having opposable thumbs.” All three of them erupted in giggles and smiles, this moment bring the most lighthearted any of them had been in weeks. The giggles died out and all they were left with was the hum of the generators and their smiles. 

"I'm just glad to see you again, dad." Amelia told him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. 

"I'm glad to see you too, kiddo." He smiled and placed a kiss on the side of her head.

***

They made their way back into the heart of D.C stopping at River City where Amelia got the pleasure of an apology from Doctor Li, something she hadn't expected to get. She had entered the rusting city with Butch and her father and left with a handful of scientists accompanying them to the Purifyer. Li sent her and Butch into the monument to clear out any super mutants who had sought to reclaim their territory. Luckily for them, they faced a single hulking beast and one active turret. After that Amelia was put to work by her father and the other scientists, something she was actually looking forward to. She fixed fuses, booted up the mainframe and as she was clearing the drain pipes of gunk it happened. 

 

Just as she flipped the switch and water came rushing through she watched as a Vertibird landed and unloaded at least 2 dozen Enclave soldiers. She heard her father frantically call for her through the intercom as she heard metal doors be broken down and laser guns being fired. Amelia had never run faster in her life, when she fought her way up to the Rotunda, Butch and all of the scientists were already there, the actual control area closed off with two Enclave soldiers, a Colonel, another scientists and her father inside. 

She remembers nothing but screaming at the top of her lungs as she threw herself against the glass while banging her fists against it as well, making them raw and bloody. What will haunt her forever is how close everyone close to her including herself came to death. The Colonel not only shot a scientist but when he threatened more violence, her father flipped on the radiation and nearly killed himself. If Amelia had not been there and had not been thinking so quickly, her father wouldn’t be with her today. 

She screamed at the top of her lungs unintelligible orders at the others as she unlocked the control room and pulled her father and only her father out before locking it up again with the Enclave soldiers inside. As the doors behind them began to bang with the hitting of metal covered fists, Amelia pumped every pack of Rad Away into her father’s veins before leading them down and out of the room.

The only thing Amelia remembers is that she blocked out all sounds but gunshots as she lead everyone through the underground tunnels below the pipes of the Jefferson Memorial. The sunlight stung her eyes as Madison Li opened up the doors right outside of the Brotherhood of Steel compound called the Citadel, She remembers Madison yelling into an intercom as Amelia finally caught her breath. All of them were let into the giant pentagon shaped building, Scribes and Paladins greeting them as doctors took carted her father off into some unknown place. The last thing she remembered was shaking the hand of a man who called himself Elder Lyons before her knees buckled and collapsed under her as she fell unconscious on the ground. 

***  
The overhead lights buzzed with power as Amelia finally regained consciousness, the steel ceiling and fluorescent bulbs above her confused her foggy mind. Sitting up and swinging her legs over the side of a steel bed, the banners with the Brotherhood sigil hung on the gray metal wall across from her. Suddenly, the memories of her father’s near death experience came flooding back to her. She flew to her feet only to howl in pain as she collapsed, fiery pain ripping up her left leg from her calf all the way to her hip. Tears swelled in her eyes while she struggled to find her way back into bed. 

“Woah there, Nosebleed.” Strong arms wrapped themselves around her, pulling her onto the bed. She looked up to find Butch holding onto her, a bandage resting on his cheek and bags developing under his stunning blue eyes. 

“Dad...where’s my dad, where is he? Dad! Dad!” She screamed, pushing Butch away with all her might which was not that much. He stroked her hair, grabbing her chin and forcing her to look at him. 

“Hey, hey, hey, calm down,” He cooed, rubbing his thumb up and down her soft cheek, “You’re old man is alright, hell, you’re in worse condition than him.” He gestured down to her left leg. Amelia looked down to find her entire calf wrapped up with not so white bandages that were slowly stained brown and bright red. With teary eyes, she buried her face into his chest, throwing her arms around him. 

“W-What happened…?” She choked out as she broke down into ugly sobs. Butch crawled onto the bed next to her, pulling her into his lap as she began to calm down quickly. He sighed, running his fingers through her messy brown locks. 

“The Enclave came in and took the Purifier from us. Your father is okay, luckily. A few seconds longer and he would have been toast.” She nodded softly, pulling away and wiping her nose and eyes on the back of her hands. 

“And my leg?” She questioned, still sniffling. Butch sighed and held her hands softly, stroking the back of her knuckles. 

“When you were kicking insane ass, you got shot. You felt nothin’ while you were still goin’ but when we finally got to safety and all that energy wore off, the pain hit you like a bulldozer and you went down. You’ll be fine in a month, tops” He brushed away her bangs and kissed her forehead, smiling softly. Amelia fell silent for a while, twiddling her fingers together before speaking up again.. 

“Why so long?” She questioned, furrowing her eyebrows, sniffling. Butch sighed and shrugged his shoulders. 

“Hell if I know, I don’t know shit about medicine or anything like that. I think they said because the bullet broke apart in your leg or something.” He scratched his head, furrowing his own eyebrows in thought at her inquiry. Amelia sighed, looking down at her lap, realizing finally that they had stripped her down to the cotton shorts and tank top she sported under her vault suit. 

“Let me see my dad.” She told him instead of asking. She closed her eyes and sat up straight, sighing. 

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea right now, kitten.” Butch informed her, setting his hand on the small of her back, rubbing small circles with his finger tips. Amelia’s eyes shot open and she frowned at him. 

“Now, Butch, let me see him.” She snapped at him, not eager to give in easily. Butch held up his hands in defense, standing from the bed. He crossed the room, grabbing an old, half rusted wheel chair from the corner and helping her into it before rolling her down the hall to see her father.

 

***

“Wow, you looks terrible.” Both James and Amelia spoke the same sentence when they laid eyes on each other. Both were confined to wheelchairs, weak and pale. They both laughed and hugged each other as well as they could despite their confinements. Her father was getting over radiation poisoning while she was dealing with a giant hole in her leg. 

“I didn't expect to survive that incident. You saved my life, Amelia.” Her father's face was a mix between gratitude and shame. Amelia just smiled and patted her father's shoulder.

“I just got you back, I wasn't gonna let you leave me again.” She grinned with tears in her eyes that threatened to spill over into her cheeks. James reached over and held her hand tightly, smiling as best he could. 

Amelia was not the child he left back in the Vault. Looks wise, her skin had tanned and covered in healing wounds, her hair was longer and dirty much to her disdain and the vault suit she wore the day she was kicked out of her home was patched up and reinforced with spikes and junk she had found in the Wasted. 

Mentality wise, she was still willing to lend a helping hand to any who asked but she wouldn't hesitate to fire a bullet into the head of a raider. She was beginning to acclimate to the life outside her steel vault and she was definitely becoming Wasteland weathered without even knowing it. 

“So, what's it gonna take to get Project Purity back in action?” She spoke up and snapped her father out of his daze. He raised his eyebrow in confusion at his daughter who seemed more than pumped to get a rifle in her hand again.

“Honey, you can't even stand up. It's gonna be awhile before you're able to go helped with that.” He furrowed his eyebrows in concern. Amelia sighed and pouted, a characteristic from her childhood that would never leave.

“There's gotta be something I can do to help.” She poured more and begged, giving her father puppy dog eyes. Another trait she kept up from youth. He sighed and rubbed his temple. 

“Go talk to Scribe Rothchild, he wanted to see you as soon as you were up for it.” James watched as Amelia's eyes lit up with joy. 

“Thanks dad!” She hugged him tight before speeding off in her wheelchair, bound to cause some trouble and headaches in the Citadel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you mean James dies in the purifyer? Uhm as seen right here in my mediocre fic that he doesn't die and they live happily ever after ok just accept it it's fact


	8. Chapter 8

Amelia was excited to meet everyone in the Citadel and while she didn’t remember everyone’s names, she remembered what ever interesting story they had told her the previous time they talked. She worked with the Scribes to help recover Project Purity information, begged the Knights and Paladins for days before they finally gave up, letting her learn how to fire laser and plasma guns and rifles, and she slowly began her physical recovery with the help of Butch who may have argued with her but helped her walk again. 

Within two weeks she was right as rain, running on obstacle courses and shooting just as well, even better than, the new Brotherhood recruits. Her next task was to head all the way out to Camp Little Lamplight to gain entry into Vault 87 to get the G.E.C.K, the last piece needed to get the purifier working. Amelia was ready to get back into action, excited to put her new skills to the test, her father on the other hand. 

“But Dad!” Amelia pouted, slumping into her seat in her father’s office that was strewn with paperwork and lab equipment. He looked up at her from his terminal which casted a green hue onto his tired features. 

“I just don’t think it’s a good idea to be sending you out so soon.” He admitted, returning back to logging data, his fingers mashing away at keys while his eyes flickered to hastily written numbers. Amelia groaned and crossed her arms over her chest, still sporting a pouting lower lip. 

“Dad, please? I know how to defend myself and how to fix myself if anything happens. It’ll take me like two weeks, tops.” She stood, resting her palms flat on the cool steel of his desk, her eyes filled with hope. James sighed and sat back in his chair, rubbing his hands down his face. He stayed silent for a long time, thinking about his daughter’s journey. Finally, after solid 5 minutes, he broke the silence. 

“Fine. You can go.” He smiled up at her through tired eyes, the wrinkles on his face accentuated by his grin. Amelia jumped up and spun around to the other side of his desk, hugging him with all her might. 

“Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” She squealed in joy, excitement firing through her entire body. She placed a large kiss on his forehead before heading out of the room, a skip in her step. 

“Don’t forget to pack stimpaks!” He called after her, her laugh echoing down the hall.

***  
Amelia loved children from newborns to 14 year olds, she loved them. As a kid she played House with Amata, Suzy, Pauly and sometimes Butch if he wasn’t too busy with trucks. When she was older she was the favorite among the younger kids in the Vault when it came to getting shots and check ups. She promised herself she would have no less than two children, at least one boy and one girl with whoever she ended up with. Children were one of her favorite things and for the most part they loved her as well. Then her and Butch found their way to Camp Little Lamplight. The children in that camp made her wish that she never had kids out in the Wasteland for fear that they would end up like those brats. They were rude and cursed at her more than an angry tunnel snake did, which did not please her. She was tempted to take her chances with the extreme radiation at the real entrance to Vault 87 than deal with these brats but Butch convinced her otherwise. All they had to do was release some children from Paradise Falls which sounded easy enough. They were wrong. 

Filled with sleazy slavers and slaves with explosive collars, Amelia opted to just go in guns blazing instead of taking up any type of negotiation option with the evil men and women who enslaved their fellow man. In world with giant mutant humans and radiation the last thing someone should have to worry about is being enslaved. Once everyone laid dead and her bag was filled with their supplies, they located the slaves who were led by a group of small children. The leader of them told her how to deactivate their collars which she almost didn’t do since he called her “giant” and “mungo”. Luckily she convinced him to call her by her name and then she was much more willing to help them. It took a good 20 minutes for her to hack into Eulogy Jones’ terminal but when she finally deactivated the exploding collars, she unlocked the gates and let the slaves go who didn’t hesitate to run free. 

On their way back to Little Lamplight, they passed through a scrapyard filled with old world cars and machines that have long since been pulled apart by raiders and rusted to dust. It was nothing much to them, just bucket kicking and dust billowing behind them. Then the sounds of gunshots rang in their ears and dog growls alerted them to stray left. They found a dead body being defended by an angry dog who ripped chunks out of the legs of raiders. Amelia blasted a bullet into the skull of the second one that was beating on the poor mutt. Once the raiders fell dead, the canine trotted over to her and laid at her feet, giving her a wag of the tail and a soft whine, his ears tilting down. 

“What’s wrong boy? You’re owner gone?” She tilted her head, crouching down and rubbing between the dog’s ears. He barked sadly before slobbering all over her hand, wagging his tail excitedly. 

“You wanna travel with us, boy, huh?” Amelia grinned, standing up and clapping her hands. The mutt jumped up and barked happily, running laps around her and Butch, causing both of them to laugh. She patted the dog's head and crossed over to his former owners body. She rummaged through his pockets and found an old crumbled journal that held the name of the dog who was so eloquently named, Dogmeat. Amelia set the book back on the dead man’s chest and stood, crossing back over. 

“Well, Dogmeat, Butch, let’s hit the road.” She grinned and headed out, hands clutching the straps to her bag as she kicked up dirt, Butch blowing smoke from his lips and their new companion, Dogmeat, barking as he trotted along, his tail high and wagging. 

The kids at Little Lamplight were more than excited to have their friends back and less than excited to see her and Butch again, but they did smile when they saw Dogmeat who was just as joyful to be present for grinning faces and many ear scratches from the kids. When Amelia asked for access through “Murder Pass”, the kids called her a “crazy ass mungo” and backed away from her, making Dogmeat slightly sad to not have as much affection given to him. Reluctantly, they gave her the keys to the door and let her through. Their whispers less than discreet as she walked through the wooden door and locked it behind her, slipping the key into one of her many pockets. 

***

Murder Pass was a good nickname for the tunnels that lead into Vault 87. The place was crawling with Super Mutants who were well armed and vicious. Luckily, the new companion they picked up was good at ripping the knees out of the yellow beasts, making head shots a lot easier as well as the fighting in general. A lot of ammo and supplies like Rad-X were looted from the Muties making all the battling well worth it. It took them more than an hour to clear through the hulking beasts but they eventually found their way to the door that led into the vault. 

Upon opening the door, instantly the smell of death and mold blasted them in the face. A choir of groans and coughing came from all three of them, their eyes watering at the stench. The next thing that hit them was the gore as they entered, having regained their stomachs which were almost lost again as they witnessed the blood and other things smeared on every surface. 

“Holy fucking shit.” Butch muttered through his mouth which was covered with the sleeve of his vault suit, trying to mask the horrid smell that was surrounding them. Amelia had gotten used to the horrible things people did out in the Wastes but this gruesome sight in front of her made her stomach threaten to empty its contents. 

“What the fuck happened in here?” Amelia asked, trying to stifle her coughs. Butch shrugged, kicking a pile of what he thought was trash but ended up being a pile of bones and rad roaches that scattered everywhere. Butch screeched, pulling out his gun and stomping at the floor in an attempt to kill the bugs which terrified him to no end. 

Amelia pulled him away from the skittering roaches and yanked his gun away from him, scolding him loudly until he clamped his hand over her mouth, hushing her. They heard the echoes of talking bouncing off the walls. It took them a few seconds to realize it was the barely intelligible speaking of a hulking Super Mutant. They ducked into a nearby room, pressing themselves in a hidden corner between the wall and a flipped over desk. They sat in silence for what seemed like eons until the talking subsided and the sounds of footsteps echoed less and less. Both Amelia and Butch let out a sigh of relief, their tense muscles relaxing. 

“Don't you have a list of vaults with you?” He whispered, taking out his gun and reloading the clip. Amelia nodded and slung her bag around into her lap, rummaging through the sack filled with ammo, food and medicine. Eventually she found a crumbled piece of faded paper with messily scrawled cursive on it. 6 hastily written numbers and short descriptions lined the paper. Amelia scanned for Vault 87, her finger dragging across the torn edge of the worn paper. The third one down was Number 87, almost a paragraph scribbled next to it with ink heavier in some words than in others. 

“Here we go,” Amelia cleared her throat and dragged her fingers below the words as she spoke, “In 2078 the inhabitants of Vault 87 were taken and sealed into airtight chambers and exposed to the Forced Evolutionary Virus, turning them into what are known as Super Mutants and Centaurs. The original Vault 87 Super Mutants began to kidnap humans from all over the Capital Wasteland since they are steril. They have been doing this for the past 200 years.” Amelia’s voice tapered off, her face going more and more pale as she spoke longer and longer. She crumbled the paper up and threw it back into her bag, slinging it over her shoulders. She checked the ammo in her Chinese assault rifle before standing, her hands clenching her gun. 

“Let’s go kick some Mutant ass.” She said, sounding more strong than she felt, giving off an air of false confidence. 

They blew up and pumped lead into the bodies of the ginormous beasts that fired back. Halfway through the Vault they came across an intelligent Super Mutant by the name of Fawkes who had a better vocabulary than the children at Little Lamplight. He informed them that the room which contained the G.E.C.K was flooded with radiation which put a huge damper on Butch and Amelia’s mood. He perked them back up by negotiating with them. If they opened up the chambers and let him out, he would delve into the radioactive room for them and bring forth their last needed piece for Project Purity. With not a lot of options left, Amelia agreed. They had cleaned out the place before they met Fawkes so after turning off the locks the only enemies they had to face were two Centaurs and a ghoul. Fawkes thanked them and led them to the room right outside of the place where the G.E.C.K was. He told them to stay put where they were before stumbling inside, his footsteps echoing off the walls.

“Do you really think this G.E.C.K thing is gonna work?” Butch asked as he leaned against a semi clean wall, lighting up a cigarette that hung between his lips. Amelia sat on an upturned metal box, Dogmeat at her feet as she reloaded and cleaned her weapons. She sighed and rolled back her shoulders, cracking her neck. 

“I sure as hell hope so.” Amelia slung her bag back over her shoulder, holstering her 10mm on her thigh and her assault rifle against her chest. Moments later Fawkes stepped out of the room, reeking of radioactivity. He handed her a giant case filled with a screen and multiple buttons and knobs on it. She grinned wide and jumped up and down, excited as she was on her 10th birthday when she got her Pip Boy and BB gun. 

“Thank you Fawkes. It means so much.” She closed it, locking it before holding it in one hand and pulling her 10mm out into her other. “Let’s blow this gore fest.” Butch nodded in agreement, Dogmeat barking as she walked with a skip in her step. Coming upon a locked door, she handed off the G.E.C.K to Butch who held it as she fiddled with wires for a few moments before the steel doors slid open. She grinned and stepped through the archway. The last thing she heard was Butch yelling out her to get out of the way before a grenade in front of her exploded, sending her to the ground, her ears blocking out all sound but ringing. Every muscle in her body was tense and rigid as she watched two Enclave soldiers and the same Colonel who almost killed her father walk in and smile at her. He crouched down and said something she couldn’t hear to his lackies before she fell unconscious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact, while Amelia despises MacCready, when he get's older she ends up looking after Duncan while he's away in the Commonwealth.


	9. Chapter 9

The pounding in Amelia’s head and the ringing in her ears felt like the workers back in the Vault where fixing her skull. Her eyes slowly opened despite protests from her thoughts, her sight slowly adjusting to the blue tinted lights. As she regained consciousness she felt an ache in her entire body as goosebumps rose against her cold skin. She lifted her head, her neck screaming in pain as she did so. Across the room she spotted none other than the same Colonel who has caused her so much grief and strife. He grinned a slimy smile through thin lips and straight teeth. He took long strides, reaching her and standing with his heels touching and his hands clasped behind his back. 

“So, you’re awake. Let’s keep this nice and simple. You’re gonna tell me the code for that purifier and you’re gonna tell me now.” He kept that grin, his entire body stiff as he stared her down. Amelia considered herself someone who very rarely got angry but something about the man standing in front of her made her blood boil. Her eyes slipped into a glare as she refused to look away from him. He stood close enough to her now that she could get a good look of him. He sported a long tan overcoat with some high necked shirt beneath it. His eyes and hair were light gray with wrinkles sprouting all over his pale face. He stood tall and proud, with a name tag that “Colonel Autumn” a name that seemed too soft and light for a man so hard and evil such as him.

“What the hell is going on here?” She asked, raising her eyebrows, her lips twisting into a frown. He chuckled and shook his head, crossing his arms across his chest. 

“I’ll tell you what’s going on here. You lost. The good guys won this one, and now we’re wrapping up loose ends. We’ve got the purifier, now we just need the code to start it.” He told her, his smile growing wider by the second. 

“I’m not telling you shit.” She growled at him, lowering her head. The Colonel snapped his hand up, taking a fistfull of her hair and yanking her head back up, forcing her to keep eye contact. 

“You’re going to give me that code now, and save us all a lot of trouble. I’ll even let you and your little friend go, maybe even that mutt of yours. So how about it?” He explained to her with a tight grip still on her hair, his face falling into a scowl that accentuated the deep wrinkles on his face.

“Fuck you.” Amelia snarled, spitting in his face. He growled and smacked her hard, leaving her left cheek burning and red. 

“I’ll be honest, I’m running out of patients here, and I’m not looking to play games with you. You tell me that code or it’s gonna cost you.” He advised her, wiping the spit off of his cheek and nose. 

“No, seriously. Fuck you.” She spat at him again, getting it all over his face. He hit her hard again, one on each cheek and earning her an unsightly gash that opened on her left which had begun to swell. Just as the Colonel opened his mouth again to speak, he was cut off by a voice on an intercom.

***

Butch was in much worse condition than her. She nearly screamed when he stumbled out of his cell, harms clutching his gear and supplies. He sported a broken nose that gushed blood down his lips and chin. Bruises littered his torso and a large slash has found itself trying to heal as it laid upon his chest. Anger and anxiety festered in her chest as she helped him redress before heading to get Dogmeat who was in perfect condition compared to the both of them. 

The Enclave base was a confusing mess of floors and offices that were too tightly packed for Amelia to even try and make sense of them. Half the time she just had to run through corridors, dodging lasers as Colonel Autumn's supports overridden President Eden’s orders. Speaking of Eden, he gave both Butch and Amelia one of the biggest twists ever revealed to them. Through all the patriotic music and speeches along with the warnings of danger, President John Henry Eden was simply an AI system. He tried to convince Amelia to work for him, for the good guys before giving her a vial of FEV. He was a smart machine but sadly for him Amelia had spent the past 19 years fiddling with computer systems and programs. She was able to say just the right thing to send Eden into overdrive, sealing the fate of the Enclaves home base. The last thing she did before she started her escape of the doomed building was smash the FEV sample on to the floor. 

The base screeched with warning sirens and a PA system that counted down to its death. The Enclave soldiers who had been so eager to shoot her were now scattering like rad roaches to get their things and leave. Close to the exit Amelia found a room with a name place that read Colonel Autumn. She threw open the door and began to throw open filing cabinets and drawers, she bashed out the screen of his terminal with the butt of her assault rifle, she even stole his limited edition Vault Tech bobblehead. 

Butch and Amelia made it out just in time as the countdown hit zero and the place began to go up in flames. The incoming sound of an exploding rushed in their ears as they dove behind a cluster of large boulders. The doors of the Enclave base, Raven Rock, blew off and the building erupted in glorious light show of flames and utter destruction. The ground shook beneath them and their ears rang as the compound was engulfed by fire. Soon, the ringing subsided and was replaced with the sound of a mini gun firing. Both of them peaked their heads over the safety of the rocks to see Fawkes, mowing down groups of escaping officers and soldiers that were lucky enough to escape the initial death of their association. Sadly a group escaped in verti birds that were too fast even for Fawkes to shoot down. Butch grabbed Amelia's hand and pulled her to her feet before dragging her along as he sprinted down the broken asphalt. 

“Butch, where are we going?” She called after him, her ears still ringing from the initial blast. He looked back at her and grinned a thousand watt smile, slicking back his hair into its preferred style with his free hand. 

“I gotta get ya back to your old man, Nosebleed.” He laughed, picking up the pace, his hand still tightly intertwined with hers.

***  
It took them almost a week for them to get back to the Citadel which just so happened to be on the complete opposite side of the Wasteland as Raven Rock. They trudged along dirt paths under the hot sun, Amelia singing along to the music that floated into their slightly damaged ears from her Pip Boy. Galaxy News Radio was the only thing that kept their minds off the pain. Amelia's leg wound had been reopened and damaged when the compound blew and during his interrogation Butch has suffered a back injury. Both of them were broken and sporting matching cheek wounds. Three days into their journey they made up camp up that night under a half crumbled and fallen highway. 

Amelia started up the fire and cooked a staple of her and Butch childhoods, Blamco Mac and Cheese. For her, it reminded her of school lunches with Amata and Suzy where they giggled and traded each other their desserts, of late nights when her dad got back just in time to whip up a box before her bath and bedtime and when she excelled at something he would make it with extra cheese and make sure to include a cookie under her plate as a surprise. For him, it stood for the times he would spend the night over at Pauly’s or Freddy’s, the days his mom was sober enough to remember she loved him and the days after little league. For Dogmeat, well he just liked the cheese he got to lick off the bowls and pots once they were done. They sat silent, staring at the crackling fire in front of them when Three Dog came howling through the speakers of Amelia’s Pip Boy. 

“Good news everyone, Stocks are up, unemployment is down, and the U.N. has just declared Global Peace Forever. Now, to the real news. Good golly, Holly. This is the worst thing to happen to our neighborhood since the HOA instituted their mandatory "scavenged rags" dress code. From Rivet City to downtown D.C., the Enclave is on the scene and setting up shop. Children, I don't care if you've ignored every other word that's come out of my mouth for the past five years. Please. hear me now, and believe. The Enclave, and that includes their Homecoming King, "President" John Henry Eden and his gorilla Colonel Augustus Autumn, are NOT here to help you.Wake up, children the Enclave have a giant truck full 'o Brahmin, and they've been spoon-feeding you the bullshit.These guys are schemers, crooks, and killers, and the sooner you all realize that and stand up to their oppression, the better. That, my friends, is fighting the good fight. Now, some music. This is Bob Crosby takin’ us “Way Back Home”

Butch looked up at Amelia who connected eyes with him. Both looked like scared kids who had gotten into trouble, caught with their hands in the cookie jar. 

“What the hell are we gonna do?” Butch asked, his voice wavering with anxiety. Amelia sighed and stood, throwing down her bag. 

“I have no clue Butch I mean, we’re not cut out for this!” She yelled, throwing her arms in the air, “We were meant to live in the safety of our Vault and get married and have kids, not fight for freedom and kill people and giant beasts.” She flopped down on the ground, dust flying up around her. 

“I mean, I just came out here to find my dad and now I’m here fighting a war. I’m not sure I can even do that.” She pulled her knees to her chest, tears swelling in her eyes. Butch sighed and scooted over to her, wrapping his arm around her. 

“Ah, come on, Nosebleed, you can do it, I know you can. You’re smart and strong and I’ll be damned if you couldn’t find a way to beat this. Besides, I’ll be there with you the entire way.” He smiled softly, invoking a giggle from the weepy Amelia. She back handed the tears off her cheeks, sniffling. 

“Thanks Butch, I don’t know what I’d do without you.” She smiled and placed a quick kiss on his cheek, keeping her legs hugged to her chest. 

“I wouldn’t know what to do without me either.” He grinned as she slugged him in the arm causing him to laugh and pull her closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So let me just give you an idea about how i wrote this. this fic was about 10,000 words deep when I decided to add onto it for my NaNoWriMo entry for last year. I averaged around 2,000 words a day and most of it was written in the 30 minute bus rides to and from school.


	10. Chapter 10

Upon entering the laboratory of the Citadel everyone who saw Amelia rushed her, creating a tight circle around her. Elder Lyons, his daughter Sarah, Scribe Rothchild and many other Scribe’s and scientists crowded her, asking questions and demanding answers. Amelia went into overdrive, her entire body shaking as tears swelled in her eyes. Sarah clutched her shoulders as she insisted she give her an answer to any question she asked. Tears flooded down her cheeks as her breath became shallow and rapid, her heart pounding so hard against her ribs she was afraid it would break them. 

“Enough!” The crowd went silent except for Amelia who clutched her chest that rose unevenly with each breath. James made his way through the mass of people and threw his daughter’s arm around his shoulders as he helped her down to his office, her legs threatening to collapse beneath her. He unlocked the door and sat her down in the plush chair in front of his desk as he swung his own around, sitting in front of her. She didn’t hesitate to throw her arms around him and fall into deep sobs that shook her entire body. Her cries were heard from the upper floors where the crowd of people who had upset her so much she had crumbled into this mess. Butch made his way into his office, standing above Amelia and her father, rubbing her shoulders as she slowly began to calm down. She looked up at her father who was there for her through thick and thin. Every memory of her being hurt came flooding into James’ mind. At age 8 when she fell during little league, her knees bleeding and bruised for 2 weeks, 11 when she got tripped by Wally and caught herself with her arms leading to a sprained wrist, 16 after she fell down the stairs, breaking her ankle in the most horrendous way. Any time she got picked on, left out or hurt James could only picture his little girl running up and clutching his legs as she sobbed into her daddy’s pants. He then pictured what it must have been like when he left her for no rhyme or reason. He could imagine the tears streaming down her face at night as fear and longing swelled in her chest at the thought of never seeing him again. James suddenly then felt very very guilty. 

“Amelia, sweetheart, what happened to you?” He asked, his voice filled with horror. Amelia sat back, rubbing her eyes. She then dove into a long winded story of everything from her massacre of Paradise Falls to her torture at Raven Rock to her arrival back at the Citadel. James listened as he pulled out medical supplies, patching up her physical wounds, waiting and scheming to fix her emotional ones as she rambled on. She finished as he disinfected the giant gash on her cheek before laying a thick layer of bandages on top.

“You've had quiet a long journey, stay here and rest, I'll go tell the Elders and we'll go from there.” He smiled through tired eyes, standing and kissing her forehead as he went to leave. Amelia perked up and dove her hands into her bag that sat at her feet. 

“Wait, dad, I got you something!” She sniffled, pulling the bag onto her lap as she moved and searched through pounds of food, ammo and stimpaks. Moments later she pulled forth a Limited Edition Vault Tech Bobble Head. She remembered the one that sat on her fathers desk back in 101 that she would mess with as a kid. The bobbling Vault Boy with the glasses and test tubes she took with her when she escaped and kept it on her nightstand in her house back in Megaton. She handed her father the knickknack and smiled. He chuckled, placing it right next to his terminal on his ever so messy desk. He kissed her forehead once more and left, closing the door behind him.

“You're weird, Nosebleed.” Butch spoke up, plopping down into the chair next to her. She raised an eyebrow in a questioning manner. “Two weeks ago you walked into Paradise Falls and slaughtered everyone in sight. Now, you're here, giving your dad a bobble head cus it reminded you of him.” He chuckled and shook his head, sighing. Amelia shrugged, dropping her bag on the ground. 

“Just cus I kill the bad guys doesn't mean I can't be nice to the people I like.” She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed, closing her eyes and enjoying the silence, something she rarely got these days. Suddenly, the door burst open, Sarah Lyons rushing through it and towards Amelia, James marching in behind her. 

“My father has decided to go ahead and storm the purifier and he wants out on the front line,” Sarah set her hands on her hips, smiling softly at Amelia who shakily got up and stood, “But before we get started, I wanted to let you know my father and I have been talking” Amelia swallowed hard, nothing in good in her life ever came after someone told her a group of people had been discussing her without her knowledge. 

“The Pride and I have decided that after all you’ve survived, you’ve done enough to be an honorary member of Lyon’s Pride.” Sarah kept her smile and Amelia was dumbfounded. She had just come here to find her dad and now she was part of the highest group of soldiers that the Capital Wasteland had ever seen. Amelia just smiled and held her hand up in a salute that evoked a bigger grin from Sarah. 

“So, you ready or what, soldier?” She asked, raising an eyebrow. Amelia looked down at herself then at both Butch and her father then nodded.

***  
The battle for the purifier inside and out was deafening. With the combined exposure to sunlight and loud explosions Amelia was surprised she hadn’t gone blind and deaf with her time out in the Wasteland. Her, Butch and all of Lyon’s Pride marched to the Jefferson Memorial with a giant fighting robot with the name Liberty Prime in front of them, throwing missiles and firing lasers at all who opposed him. Amelia was used to fighting Super Mutant, not men encased in metal suits so the battle was more exhausting than normal. Once inside the memorial, the fighting came against scientists and high ranking officers who were less defended by armor than the soldiers outside. Inside the Rotunda they were met by two soldiers holding mini guns and in the middle stood none other than Colonel Augustus Autumn. He opened his mouth to speak but Amelia didn’t give him the time of day. Once she laid eyes on him she drew her gun and shot him right between the eyes, sending him falling to the ground, his brains painting the steel rails behind him. After the fighting stopped, everyone looked at each other, enjoying the silence that filled the air around them. 

Madison Li came yelling over the intercom, screaming that someone needed to walk into the purifier and start it up or the place was doomed to explode. An uncomfortable silence fell upon them this time as they stood next to the stairs that led up to the highly irradiated room. Amelia then turned and ran up the stairs before locking the door that separated the control room and the outside. Butch and Sarah slammed their hands on the glass as they screamed at her to step out of there and let someone else do it. She turned around to face them, placing one hand on the glass, the other flipping on her own intercom speaker. Holding up her chin high, she spoke loud and proudly to her companions who held horror on their faces. 

“Revelations 21:6. I am Alpha and Omega, I am the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life, freely” With a smile, she cut off her intercom and stepped into the purifier. 

***

The same steel gray ceiling is what her eyes focused on first. The dim lights stung her eyes as she fully came to consciousness. Her head pounded, her mouth and throat were dry and scratchy. For a few moments, her mind was foggy,unsure of how she got there, before the memories of her stepping into the purifier and activating it came flooding back to her. She honestly hadn’t expected to survive that incident but here she was, alive and well. Sitting up slowly, she swung her feet over the bed and stood on weak legs. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and scanned the room to find it empty of people besides herself. Spotting Butch’s jacket tossed on the chair next to her bed, she pulled it on over her cotton tank top. She didn’t hear her father walk into the room but she did hear the shatter of the mug he dropped in surprise when he saw her standing there. He nearly sprinted across the room to pull her into the tightest hug she’s ever received. They stood with their arms wrapped around each other in silence for what seemed like hours. James was the one who finally broke the silence, his voice barely above a whisper. 

“I thought I lost you when you stepped into the purifier.” He hesitantly broke away, looking her up and down, in complete disbelief that she was standing here with him, alive and breathing. She grinned from ear to ear, grabbing both of her father;s hands in her own. 

“Father like daughter.” She giggled, earning her a smile and chuckle from her father who pulled her into another hug, laughing as he did so. “How long have I been out?” She asked, James sitting on the edge of the bed and pulling her next to him on the mattress. He then dove into a long winded explanation of how she was pulled out of the purifier by Butch and Sarah, the latter of which was still knocked out in her own coma. For the past 2 weeks Amelia had been non responsive, in a coma that no one was sure if she was gonna wake up from. 

“What about the purifier?” She asked, scared to know the answer. Her heart pounded against her ribs, unable to read her father’s expression for any hint of the aftermath of her decision.

“The purifier is working. clean water runs free for all of the Capital Wasteland.” Both James and Amelia embraced each other and broke down into tears. The fruits of their labor were a reality for them to witness. Her father’s life's work was finally complete, he could eventually die knowing that he did all he could to make the Wasteland a better place and her mother’s dream finally became a reality and Amelia blew a kiss up to the heavens, hoping that the woman she never got to meet but idolized her entire life was looking down on her and beaming with pride. They both broke away and wiped the tears from their faces, smile donning their lips with joy. 

“Where’s Butch?” She asked, more than eager to see the look on his face when he saw her awake after two weeks. James informed her he was in his room, trying to get some sleep after spending days looking after her, almost unwilling to leave her bedside. She thanked him and kissed his forehead before stumbling to the barracks and his separate closed off room he was given. She opened the door and found him fast asleep, snoring loudly with Dogmeat sleeping at his bedside. Grinning, she crawled onto his lap, straddling herself on his hips. Placing her hands on his chest she leaned down and kissed him deep and sensualy. Butch’s eyes flew open and he reached for his switchblade that sat on his bedside before he realized what was happening. When he did, he slipped his eyes closed and leaned up, gripping her hips as he melted into the kiss. He broke away and slipped away the leather jacket covering her torso, flinging it into some unknown corner of the room. 

“Fuck, I was so afraid you were never gonna wake up.” He placed kisses all over her face and neck, trailing down to the collar of her tank top. Amelia grinned and giggled, the feeling of his lips tickling her skin. 

“I’m not gonna die on you that easy, Tunnel Snake.” She grinned, pulling his face up from her chest, staring into his sparkling blue eyes. He laid her on her back and loomed over her, smirking. 

“I wasn’t gonna let you, Nosebleed.” Butch kissed her hard, unzipping his vault suit top before gripping her hips tightly as he nipped at her bottom lip.


	11. Chapter 11

With the Enclave in shambles and the Brotherhood in need of some regathering, Amelia and Butch got some time for themselves to wander the Wastes. The first thing she wanted to do was to stop back in Megaton, a place she hadn’t been back to since she dove into the heart of D.C. to get to the Museum of Technology almost 2 months ago. She had promised the bubbly Moira that she would help out with her book as soon as she got back and her promise was now long overdue. Both of them traveled hand in hand, Dogmeat padding along next to them as they trekked down cracked asphalt and road blocks. Three Dog seemed to blast through their Pip-Boy speakers abruptly, no introduction or anything. 

“It’s been two weeks children, two weeks, since the Brotherhood and those crazy cats from Vault 101 kicked the Enclave out of Project Purity and started that baby chuggin’! Now, you kids remember James, the scientist, whose kid is basically our Wasteland Saviour, right? Well, I found out recently that his wife had a dream. See, she was a scientist, too. Worked on that project. You know what she wanted? The waters of life! Free, clean! Err, for any, and all! God, ain't that beautiful? But even better, it's finally happened, the water is clean and Hell yeah, it's free, OWWWWW! Just a little patience children. As I speak, the Brotherhood is working with Rivet City Security to get that fresh water to the wasteland, the caravans are comin'! So get your glasses ready, children. This round's on me! Now's just here to hopin’ that our little Saint wakes up from that coma soon. We’re rootin’ for ya, kid." 

Amelia stopped dead in her tracks, staring down at the screen of her Pip Boy in shock. Both Butch and Dogmeat turned around to look at her in confusion. 

“What’s the holdup, Nosebleed?” He called, trotting back over to her. She looked at him with eyebrows knitted in uncertainty for a few moments before loading up her Pip-Boy map and placing a marker down. She then turned on her heels and started to wander back up and to the left of where they were supposed to be headed. Butch and Dogmeat looked at each other in wonder before running after Amelia. 

“Where are you going, huh?” Butch hollered after her, running up to her in an attempt not to be left behind. 

“Galaxy News Radio!” She looked back at him as she picked up the pace down the crumbling road. 

***

Amelia pushed past Brotherhood members as she raced up to the recording studio of GNR. She burst through the doors and raced up the stairs, Butch barely able to keep up with her. 

“Three Dog?” She called as she reached the top of the stairs, spotting the DJ stand up from his sound board and wander over to the stairwell, grinning. 

“Well, well, well, look who's back in action! My god, kid, you had us all worried sick.” He leaned over the railing above the stairs, smiling and pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. 

“I’m not quitin’ yet, I’ve still got a Good thing to Fight for.” She grinned from ear to ear, invoking a laugh from Three Dog. She then tilted her head and raised an eyebrow, “How’d you hear about my condition in the first place?” She stuck her hands in her pockets. 

“Well, that boyfriend of yours trekked all the way up here two days after you got that purifier working and became my first live guest, telling me your whole journey to get that thing workin’ and boy did it pay off.” He told her, crossing his arms over his chest, “You’ve become a legend across the Capital Wasteland, kiddo. And so has he.” Three Dog grinned, tossing a hand back at Butch. Amelia smiled again and ran her hands down her face, chuckling. 

“Christ….this is...surreal.” She said, shaking her head, “Listen, Three Dog, while I’m here and newly recharged, is there anything you want me to go and fetch for ya?” She asked him, raising an eyebrow. 

“Well, there is something and it’s not as dangerous as you’re used to.” 

***

The record store was two hours away from the radio studio and filled with a handful of mole rats that lost their heads to Amelia’s baseball bat. Amelia sat on the counter in the back of the room, going through records, playing them and making sure they weren’t too damaged as Butch rummaged through the racks of half ruined records in search for one that could be passable. Amelia sighed and hopped off the counter and switched out the records and smiled softly as the soothing voice of Ella Fitzgerald came from the record player in that grainy and cracked sound she loved. Amelia closed her eyes and sashayed over to Butch who was busy flipping through cracked vinyl, slipping records out of flaking paper covers. 

“Birds do it...Bees do it...Even educated fleas do it...Let’s do it...Let’s fall in love.” 

Amelia leaned over and took the records out of Butch hands and took them into her own, intertwining her fingers with his. 

“What the hell, Nosebleed?” He asked as he turned around to face her to find her with her eyes closed and her hips swaying back and forth. 

“In Spain, the best upper sets do it….Lithuanians and letts do it….Let's do it, let's fall in love…”

“Come on, Butch...let’s dance….like when we were those gawky 16 year olds back in the Vault.” She told him, setting one hand on his shoulder. Butch rolled his eyes and sighed, embarrassed. She referenced the dance they held back in the Vault when they were still in school. That night they struggled to dance, their faces flustered the entire time as they tried to avoid stepping on each others feet. That was also the night they shared their first kiss and eventually fell in love with each other. 

“We got work to do, Nosebleed.” He said, tapping a foot to the music absentmindedly. She slowly opened her eyes and set her soft, dream-like gaze on him before taking his hand and setting it on her hip and beginning to sway back and forth again. Butch sighed, defeated and started to dance with her, only a bit better than that night back in the Vault at that god awful dance. He tried to keep his eyes averted from her loving gaze and he assumed his face to be a nice shade of scarlet. She closed her eyes and hummed, letting the music move her. They danced in their soft circle for a while, Butch finally getting into it towards the end of the song, even spinning her and watching her giggle. 

“In shallow shoals... English soles do it…..Goldfish in the privacy of bowls do it....Let's do it, let's fall in love…” 

Amelia giggled as she fell back into his hands, watching his own lips crack into a smile that was genuine and meaningful. Her head was spinning and her heart was thumping and she again felt exactly like how she felt back in that Vault on that night of the dance and she was loving every single second of it. She moved her hand from his shoulder to his chest and smiled at him. 

“Now if the birds and the bees and the trees do it…..The monkeys and the birds, bees do it...in water gates they quarrel but they do it...And if they can make up and still do it baby, how about me and you?”

Butch twirled her one last time and caught her, her hair disheveled and all in her face as she giggled and stopped on unsteady feet. She looked up at him again and grinned, singing along to that last line. 

“Hey...let’s do it now...Let’s do it..Let’s fall in love…” Amelia stood on her toes and kissed him softly and sweetly, his hands gripping her hips tightly as he melted into it. It lasted for a few seconds as the track switched over and they finally broke apart, slight smiles on their faces. 

“Come on, Nosebleed...let’s go get these records up to GNR.” He told her, letting go and traipsing over to the record player, taking and packing up the vinyl in an old cardboard box. He turned around and grinned at her. 

“And who knows...maybe we’ll fall in love.” He winked and chuckled, walking out of the record store. 

***

“You’ll never guess the news I’ve got, children. It’s truly great, I tell ya. So, our little Saint has finally woken up from her coma and her and her boyfriend came to visit ol’ Three Dog and guess what...they went at got me a present. How sweet. But this ain’t just any present, kiddies. Oh no, our Vault cats brought me a whole box full of new music! I don’t know if you guys realize how hard it is to find music out there but it’s harder than a Super Mutant’s skull. Have you seen what radiation does to vinyl? It ain’t pretty. So, love it or hate, you’re listening to Galaxy News Radio and a new part of it’s soundtrack.”

Amelia smiled down at her Pip-Boy as her, Butch and Dogmeat walked along the broken highway, surrounded by dead trees and shrubs, holding Butch’s hand in her left and her Chinese Assault Rifle loosely in her right. 

***  
“Hey kiddies, this is Three Dog, your voice in the darkness. Or... at least, the radiation.Got lots of stuff goin' down in Post Apocalyptia these days. Here some of the latest news.Alright, Three Dog has heard about some crazy things going on out there in the Capital Wasteland, but this one just might beat them all. I've been getting some scattered reports that a couple of costumed kooks have been battling for control of the settlement called Canterbury Commons. One of these wackos seems to be assisted by robots, and the other by mutated bugs. Every day, it's seems to be the same nutty scene: with the scuffles ending in a stalemate. So if your travels take you to Canterbury Commons, keep your head down and your assault rifle loaded for crazy. Up next, we've got a public service announcement. Listen up, children. This stuff's important!Remember, children, when the raiders come, there ain't no shame in locking your doors, barricading the windows, and cowering under the nearest bed. When these psychos come to play, they have one thing on their minds: making your life as fucking miserable as humanly possible. Raiders can't be bargained or reasoned with, and there ain't no use surrendering, cause they'll just shoot you anyway. So run, hide or... fight, if you've got the balls and the guns. But for God's sake, don't go wavin' the white flag. They'll just strangle you with it. "

Butch looked up at Amelia who was staring at her map, trying to figure out directions. 

“You wanna head to Canterbury Commons?” He asked, checking the rounds left in his 10mm. Amelia looked up at him and shook her head quickly. 

“Uh, hell no, you hate bugs and I don’t wanna deal with robots.” She told him as they made their way for Rivet City, hearing about some historian who was offering a large sum of caps for a piece of paper. 

“Okay, good point. But how do you know I hate bugs?” He questioned, raising an eyebrow as he holstered his gun on his hip. Amelia laughed, looking at him with her eyebrows raised high on her forehead.

“Really? You nearly cry when you see rad roaches!” She laughed, slapping her knee in hysterics as Butch pouted, fake sniffling in an attempt to earn sympathy. 

“That’s mean of you, Nosebleed. I know what you hate.” He looked over at her, sad puppy dog eyes plastered on his face. Amelia stopped and looked at him in confusion. For a few moments Butch kept his sad expression before lifting up his hands and a wicked grin spreading across his lips. Amelia still didn’t understand then his arms shot out in front of him and his fingers danced up her sides. She screamed with laughter as tickled her sides and under her armpits. Being tickled was her one weakness, He held that fact against her since he discovered it as kids, something he always threatened in a non harmless way when she was being a jerk. She fell onto the hard ground, a plume of dirt erupting around her as she squealed with laughter. Butch retracted his hands as he laughed at her crumpled and giggling form on the ground in front of him. Dogmeat questioned all that was happening and trotted over, sniffing and pawing at Amelia’s face. Sitting up, she ran her hands through her hair before scratching behind the mutts ears. Butch pulled Amelia to her feet, grins wide on both of their faces. 

“Alright, I won’t tickle you as long as you don’t make fun of me for hatin’ those damn bugs.” He held his hand out in front of him and Amelia shook it, all while still giggling. 

“Not my fault you’re scared of bugs.” She grinned at him, earning her a slug to the shoulder.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> from here on out it's gonna be a lot of side quests and more personal moments between butch and amelia fun times!


	12. Chapter 12

To say that Downtown D.C. was confusing to traverse was putting it lightly. Half destroyed buildings led to nothing but blocked off streets covered with giant loads of concrete and steel beams. The only way to some areas of the city was through the Metro tunnels that were dark, dank, and filled with ghouls that come running at any sound. Being lost is something you didn’t want to be in D.C but it happened more often than not to Butch and Amelia. They had been sent into the hell hole by a man so eloquently named Abraham Washington who was a self proclaimed historian who ran a little museum his parents had set up in an empty room in Rivet City which was named the “Capitol Preservation Society.” He had asked the both of them to run what he called “a little errand.” That little errand was a deep trek into D.C. and a place called the National Archives where they were to recover the one and only Declaration of Independence. 

Both Butch and Amelia stood, staring in confusion at their Pip-Boy maps as they tried to figure out where the hell they were supposed to be headed. Just around the corner they could spot the Super Mutant trenches and the Washington Monument but as for where the Archives were located, they had not a damn clue. 

“Why the fuck are we doing this again, Nosebleed?” Butch asked, annoyance lacing his voice as he closed his Pip-Boy map and lowered his arms, finally giving up his search. Amelia still stared at hers with knitted eyebrows in confusion. 

“Because this Washington guy is giving us 400 caps EACH for this journey.” She placed down a marker on her map, pulled her 10mm from her hip and took a left down a rubble filled alley way, her gun locked and loaded for any loonies wishing to cause trouble. Butch sighed loudly to express his displeasure before trekking behind her. They took a few more twists and turns down alley ways and behind buildings before their Pip-Boys began beeping in rapid succession to alert them of something wrong. Stopping in their tracks, they loaded up their screens and flicked back between sections. 

“The fuck was that? Did you pick that up?” He asked, looking over to her, raising an eyebrow. She furrowed her own and pursed her lips, nodding. 

“Yeah, I think it was a radio frequency.” She said, switching off the GNR broadcast and loading up another signal that had popped up on their screens called “Ranger emergency frequency” 

"This is Butcher of Reilly's Rangers. If anyone can hear this signal we're in danger and we need your help. Ammunition supply is running out and we've lost a man. We're pinned down on the roof of the Statesman Hotel by Super Mutants.If assistance is not possible, please attempt to contact Reilly, who's made for Underworld inside the Museum of History.Oh, shit... here they come again…”

The transmission cut out and left the two in silence as they stared at each other, Dogmeat wagging his tail softly, ignorant of the moral dilemma they’ve just had thrusted upon them. Amelia looked up at Butch, her eyebrows still furrowed. 

“We gotta do somethin’...but I have no fucking clue where the Statesman Hotel is…” She said, sighing and biting her lip, tapping her nails nervously on her Pip-Boy screen. 

“The dude said somethin’ about one of their crew holdin’ over in the Museum of History...how about we head there first.” He shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Amelia nodded, setting a marker for the museum and turning on her heel, walking at a very fast pace. 

***

Amelia was always a kind person who gave almost everyone the benefit of the doubt which is probably how she ended up with Butch who was originally her childhood bully but now was her soulmate. Her generosity and pure kindness is what led her to become a loved person among the Wasteland ghouls. While shunned for their gravel voices, peeling skin and general difference, Amelia loved the social outcasts. Gob was her first friend when she came out into the Wasteland and after her first visit to Underworld, she was hooked on treating the men and women shunned by society the best she could. Every so often since her time off from the Brotherhood, if she was in the area she stopped by to say hey to the group of ghouls situated in the ruins of the Museum of History. So it was no surprise when she stepped foot into the place she was welcomed with opened arms. She got waves and kind questions as she was pointed in the direction of the medical room which was placed in the far back area of the bottom floor. 

When they found the one and only Reilly she was in pretty bad shape. Broken bones, concussion and put into a medically induced coma was more than enough to leave Amelia’s hopes a little downtrodden. She had taken to ask Doctor Barrows to see her file personally but it didn’t help lighten her spirits at all. The poor girl had been attacked by Super Mutants in a large ambush and it was a huge miracle that she was even alive. Despite this, Amelia still convinced Barrows to wake her up after much bargaining and pleading. Slowly, Reilly began to roll over and open her eyes, groaning groggily. She sat up shakily and went to stand before Amelia held her down softly and sat next to her. 

“W-What...Where am I? What happened? Who are you? How long have I been out?” She flooded Amelia with questions, running a hand down her face and yawning. 

“You’re in Underworld...I’m Amelia….you haven’t been out that long, luckily.” She told her, keeping her hand on her shoulder as Reilly ran her fingers through her messy auburn locks. 

“R-Right….Right...Can’t remember….what I was doing.” She sat for a few seconds, eyebrows furrowed in thought before her eyes went wide and she shot standing up, “Wait! Oh shit! My men! My team! What happened to them?” She asked, standing, running a hand through her tangled hair again, fear coating her voice. 

“Listen...you’re not in any condition to be up and about.” Amelia said, holding her hand out softly, she was used to patients being antsy or angry but something about the women in front of her was different. Reilly turned around and crossed her arms over her chest. 

“That’s NOT the way I do things. Do you have any idea what it would do to my reputation if word got out that Reilly of Reilly’s Rangers was laid up in a hospital bed?” She shouted angrily, her arms still crossed over her chest and a frown forming on her lips. 

“S-Sorry...I didn’t know who you were…” Amelia stuttered as Reilly relaxed and collapsed back down onto the bed, run down and already losing what little energy she had. 

“That’s okay, kid...don’t sweat it...the Wasteland is a big place….We’re guns for hire; best merc group in the Capital Wasteland. If you need something done in there, you seek us out.” She told her proudly, a smile creeping onto her face which accentuated the dark circles gathering under her green eyes. 

“Listen you look awful….I probably shouldn’t have woken you so soon…” Amelia replaced her hand on her shoulder, worry covering her face she doubted her decision to wake her. 

“Heh. I feel worse than I look, but that doesn’t even matter to me. I’m just worried about the rest of the Rangers…I don’t even know if they’re still alive.” She admitted, running a hand down the back of her neck. 

“I got the distress signal from your crew. Can you tell me all that happened?” Amelia asked, raising an eyebrow. 

***  
Vernon Square was a little spot in D.C. that was only accessible through the Metro System. After traversing through dark subway tunnels filled with stagnant water and feral ghouls, above ground seemed like a heavenly escape. They were there in hopes to find Our Lady of Hope Hospital and the rest of Reilly’s Rangers alive. They had found out that they group was doing some mapping work when they got ambushed by Super Mutants. They had crossed over into the Statesmen Hotel and held up on the roof but sadly, one of their men, Theo, was caught in the fire and killed. Reilly somehow made it to Underworld alive and now Amelia and Butch we’re going in on a rescue mission. It didn’t seem to hard, blow up some Muties, find a dead body and get a couple of merc’s off of a hotel roof. They had obviously done worse so this seemed like a walk in the park. Boy were they wrong. 

The whole place was thick with those damn Muties and the hospital was dark, dank, and crumbling apart. Jumping over gaping holes and throwing grenades at hulking mutants is what most of their fighting was comprised of. Luckily it was a hospital so the amount of medical gear they were able to raid from the shelves and boxes was in excess and even the stuff they didn’t need themselves they took, thinking the medics back at the Citadel would reward them nicely for the supplies which were definitely hard to come across. By the time they got into the Statesmen Hotel, they were both tired and sore from crouching and ducking from explosions. Luckily, the hotel wasn’t as full as Mutants but it was still mostly battle as they worked their way up to the roof. When they found Theo’s body, Amelia was more than happy to be more than halfway through this damn mission. As she looted through the ranger’s pockets and through the ammo box, Butch stood at the top of the stairwell incase more muties wanted to come rushing down onto them. 

“Remind me again why the fuck we’re doing this?” He asked, reloading his assault rifle and cracking his back before slicking back his tangled hair. 

“Because we’re nice people, Butch. Besides, the chick look pretty devastated when you suggested everyone was dead and I couldn’t let her keep thinking that. ” Amelia told him as she closed and locked the ammo box. Just as Amelia went to stand, a Mutie came barreling up the stairs behind the both of them, firing a round into her right shoulder before Butch took off it’s head with a couple of shots into its skull. Amelia lifted up the ammo box and clutched her free hand to her shoulder, blood slipping through her fingers as Butch tugged on her, yelling as they trampled up the stairs and bursting through the door to the roof. 

The sun burned both of their eyes as they trampled through the door. After hours of spent in the dark and dank hospital and hotel, their eyes were more than stung by the light and the sounds of yelling and gunshots only further paranoid them. Butch pulled the both of them up against into the corner by the door and one of the crumbling walls. They felt explosions under their legs and gunshots ringing in their ears as Butch pressed his hand against her shoulder. 

“You need to be more fucking careful, alright, Nosebleed?” He scolded her, helping her to her feet as the gunshots finally stopped. She nodded, not in the mood to argue as he dragged her to the crumbling stone steps that led up to the upper portion of the roof. They passed over dead Mutant bodies and empty bullet casings as they stumbled over broken cement, blood trailing behind them as it slipped down Amelia’s arms and off her finger tips. 

“Hey you two! Get your asses over here before you attract every Super Mutant in the damn building!” Called a man in merc armor crouching behind an overturned table next to an old fountain on the very top of the Hotel roof. When they got in arms range he stood and sighed softly, cracking his knuckles before holding out his hand. 

“The name’s Butcher, I’m the team's medic. It’s good to see a friendly face.” He grinned and rustled his hair, Butch denying his handshake still holding up Amelia. In the light the crew in front of them could get a good look of the hell which they just endured. Both of them were covered in dirt, dust, blood and gunpowder. Butcher’s smile faded away slowly before he spoke again. 

“Alright, now who the heck are you and when are reinforcements coming?” He asked, crossing his arms. Butch went to speak, anger flooding his face as he took offense to Butcher’s insensitivity, but Amelia held up her free hand, silencing him. 

“Listen...Butcher...this is all you’re getting, just me and him and I’m more than happy to help you guys get the fuck out of here but I’ve been shot and I need to be helped...now.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if i hadn't fallen in love with butch so hard and fast, amelia probably would have ended up with charon ngl


	13. Chapter 13

By the time Amelia and Butch had led the Rangers out of the Statesman Hotel and back to their Ranger compound both of them were tired,sore and Amelia was lightheaded from the blood loss despite how good Butcher was at removing the bullet lodged in her arm. They were given the ability to rest up for a while before they made their trek back to the Citadel, being offered food, water and the ability to clean up. They had also been paid a hefty amount in caps and ammo for their troubles which was very much appreciated. It took them another day to get back to the Citadel, stopping quiet often for Amelia to rest both her shoulder and leg acting up at multiple points through their trip. They stopped in a small empty raiders cache below a highway to rest their achy legs and sore backs just as the sun began it’s descent in the sky. Amelia collapsed onto the floor beside an old bed, blowing up a thin layer of dust and dirt. Butch sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, minding her injury. 

“How ya holdin’ up, Nosebleed?” He asked, planting a small kiss on her temple. She shrugged and sighed, leaning into him. 

“I’m tired...and sore...and in pain…” She told him softly, closing her eyes and resting her head onto his shoulder. She turned up the volume on her Pip-Boy, humming softly along to Galaxy News Radio as Butch rummaged through his bag for his pack of cigarettes. 

“You’ve got to be more careful, Nosebleed. I just got you back, I ain’t ready to lose you again.” He told her, lighting up a cigarette and taking a long drag from it. 

“Yeah…I’m sorry…I’ll be okay.” She told him, yawning softly and stretching. He took a few more drags before stubbing it out on the bottom of his boot. He kissed her cheek and stood up, holding out his hand. 

“Come on, Nosebleed, let’s get you back to your dad.”   
***

One time back in the Vault when Amelia was about 16, she slipped down a set of stairs and broke her ankle. Injuries were a common theme in her childhood but this one had to have taken the cake for most painful. She remembers screaming so loud that the Overseer later told her he had heard her from his office. Suzie Mack and Amata had to help her to her dads office, both of them frantically calling for him. When her dad came around the corner and saw her ankle in such a twisted mess and tear tracks staining her fair cheeks he felt his heart sink as worry and fear became etched across his face. Amelia never forget that look and as she limped into his little office inside the Citadel with her arm in a makeshift sling, that look came flooding back to his face. 

“Amelia, sweet christ happened to you?” He asked, shooting up from his desk, sending papers cascading to the floor. Amelia just smiled and waved her hand at him, shooing away thoughts of pain she had endured. 

“Nothing, nothing, I’m fine, dad. Just a little run in with some Super Mutants.” She brushed him off, collapsing into one of the chairs opposite of his desk, happy to be able to sit in something that had cushions. 

“Yeah by “a little run in” she means we fought off two buildings worth of those fuckers.” Butch exclaimed as he walked in, sitting in the second chair next to her. Her dad finally sat down before gesturing to her arm, worry still coating his tired face. 

“But, you’re in a sling. Something must have happened.” He said, biting his bottom lip. Amelia shrugged, which she instantly regretted, grimacing immediately afterwards.

“I was shot by a Super Mutant.” She muttered under her breath. Her father shot up in his chair, his eyes going wide with fear. 

“You got shot?!” He exclaimed loudly which prompted Butch to set down his bag and wander out of the room, not wishing to be apart of any argument that was to come forth. 

“Dad, I’m fine. I got patched up by a medic. Look.” She tried to calm him as she flung her bag to the ground. She pulled her arm out of it’s sling before unzipping her vault suit to reveal a slightly bloodied bandage wrapped around her upper arm. She slowly unraveled it, revealing the once large bullet wound was now nothing more than a small, mostly healed gash. She smiled at her father before zipping her vault suit back up and setting her arm into its sling. 

“See, I’m perfectly fine, nothing to worry about.” She assured him as he sat back in his chair, sighing in relief. 

“Alright, alright. You’ve just got to be more careful, okay?” He told her, raising an eyebrow. She nodded and smiled at him, leaning forward. 

“I’m just glad to see you again, dad.” 

*** 

Amelia sat in her room inside the Citadel, happy to have a roof over her head. Her room wasn't anything special but it was something. A bed, 2 lockers, a steel desk and a terminal were what made up her room. It worked for all of her intensive purposes and that's all she really needed. It was a place for her to rest her head at night and a safe place for storage of her items she didn’t feel like hauling back to Megaton. Sitting atop her bed, she sat with her legs crossed over each other, her guns laid around her in piles, her Chinese assault rifle in pieces in her lap as she cleaned away the gunk and gunpowder out of it. Dogmeat sat at her feet, on guard for any intruders. She sat undisturbed for at least two hours which was rare, any time she was at the Citadel within 15 minutes of her arrival someone had some urgent problem for her to fix. Which wasn't bad but it was nice to be able to have some time alone with her, her dog and her weapons with no interruptions. That didn't last forever. 

Dogmeat’s ears perked up moments before a knock came to the door. Amelia looked up and sighed, dreading whatever the person wanted, hoping to god it wasn’t a combat mission. The doorknob jiggled for a few seconds before the door opened and in walked Butch, a goofy grin plastered on his face. Amelia glanced at him and chuckled, shaking her head. 

“What do ya want Butch?” She asked, putting her gun back together piece by piece. He had his hands behind his back, the grin refusing to falter from his face, his blue eyes glinting from the light of the overhead bulbs. 

“Remember your tenth birthday?” He asked, kicking the toe of his boot against the floor. Amelia set her gun aside and raised an eyebrow, an air of suspicion bubbling in her chest. 

“Yeah.” She crained up her neck to see what he was concealing behind his back which was of no use since he was taller, farther away and a good hider of important objects. 

“Remember what Old Lady Palmer gave to ya?” He couldn't stop grinning as her made her recall such long forgotten memories. 

“Yeah, it was a sweet roll that YOU stole from me.” She pouted, crossing her arms over her chest as she slumped forward. 

“Happy Tenth Birthday, Nosebleed.” Butch pulled out a freshly baked sweet roll from behind his back. Amelia jumped to her feet and squealed with joy. She took it in her hands, feeling it's warmth radiate through her fingers. It smelled sweet and warm and just like her childhood back in the Vault. She didn't hesitate to sink her teeth into it, indulging in its sweet and sticky goodness. 

“How'd you get this?” She questioned through a mouth full of dough and frosting, his goofy grin transferring to her own face. 

“One of the Paladins was baking a batch and while he wasn't lookin’ I snagged one.” He beamed, proud of his thoughtfulness and his quick fingers. It was the little things that Butch was good at. Grand gestures and big celebrations weren’t his thing he always failed to make them nice and acceptable. But the little things he thought of throughout the day were his true forte. It stemmed all the way back to his childhood when he would lend her his crayons when hers broke to telling her a joke to bring a smile on her face during tough days. He never could do big and bright things but he always knew how to make her happy.

***

The one of the many perks of the purifier being up and working was the beauty of being able to bathe again. Amelia had been shown the bathhouse by a plucky Paladin, in Power Armor too big for his small frame, it was small and held a barely working shower and a brightly shining steel bath. It was recently added into the Citadel after they got the first supply of clean water and one of the Knights had pitched the idea. Amelia made her way down after dropping off the medical supplies with the Scribes. She locked the door and stripped of her clothes, setting her Pip-Boy on the short table next to the tub, setting it to GNR like always. First she scrubbed out the dirt and blood in her clothes in a small bucket, letting them soak as she filled up the tub with warmed water. She climbed in and sighed, leaning against the back of it, relaxing her muscles and closing her eyes. She scrubbed the filth and blood off of her skin and washed the dirt out of her hair, feeling clean for the first time since she left the Vault. She hummed along as she rid herself of grime, as the music faded and Three Dog piped up on the radio. 

“Hey everybody, this is Three Dog, your friendly neighborhood disc jockey. What's a "disc"? Hell if I know, but I'm gonna keep talkin' anyway! Got lots of stuff goin' down in Post Apocalyptia these days. Here some of the latest news…I've gotten word that a band of mercs called Reilly's Rangers were trapped on a DC rooftop, pinned down by super mutants. It would seem that a brave soldier named Theo was lost in the line of duty… but some of the others have been rescued. Do I suspect that our vault kids had some sort of intervention on this one? I certainly do. Good work, 101. Now, some music. We’ve got Billie Holiday with...Crazy He Calls Me...”

Amelia smiled as the music cut back on and she bobbed her head back and forth, singing along. A few seconds later she heard the door creak open and her hand immediately snatched up her gun as she pressed her chest against the side of the tub. She watched as Butch slid into the room, closing the door behind him. Amelia sighed and set her gun back down, leaning back into the tub. 

“Fucking A, Butch, you can’t just sneak up on me!” She nagged at him, hearing him snicker as she closed her eyes and sighed. There was a few moments of shuffling as Amelia relaxed in the tub. Then she felt the water rise and her eyes shot open, seeing Butch lean against the other side of the tub, sighing softly as well. She blushed bright red and felt her heart start to pound against her ribs.

“Butch, what the hell are you doing?” She asked as he reached over and pulled her onto his lap, turning her face an even more brilliant shade of red. He just grinned and leaned in, kissing her softly but hungirly. She kissed back heavily for a few moments before breaking away, her hands loosely balled up against his chest.

“B-Butch...we can’t...s-someone might...catch us…” She stuttered as he kissed down her neck and chest. He chuckled against her skin and smirked, muttering hot against her cold skin. 

“That’s the most thrilling part, Nosebleed. Breaking the rules is always the best.” He told her, nipping at her collar bone. She moaned softly and dipped a hand below the water, taking him in her palm. 

“Two can play at this game, Tunnel Snake.” She smirked, whispering down into his ear. 

***

Amelia often wondered what would have happened to her if she had stayed inside the Vault. If her father had never left, if everything stayed the same. These things often emerged in her head late at night while she was laid restlessly, hearing Butch’s persistent snoring. Other times they came to her while walking around the Wastes and sometimes even in the midsts of combat. Tonight was one of those nights where she laid in her bed, alone this time, staring at the dark steel wall above her as GNR softly buzzed with music. Even after her bath and little romp with Butch, she still couldn’t shut off her brain. All of these thoughts and ideas swirled around in her mind while she tried to shut it off and find peaceful sleep. But she couldn’t. Frustrated, she threw away the covers, slipped on Butch’s jacket over her tank top and shorts and traipsed her way down to her father’s office. She found him sitting at his desk, typing away at a terminal as he read off of papers filled with graphs and messily written notes. He looked up at her and turned away from his terminal. 

“Sweetheart, what are you doing up? I thought you went to bed hours ago...” He asked, turning back around as she sat across from him, slumping down. 

“I can’t shut my brain off….can’t stop thinking…” She admitted, rubbing her fingers against her temple. Her father typed in a few commands into his terminal before locking it and shutting it off, giving his full attention to her. 

“What’s on your mind, kiddo?” He asked, folding his hands together in front of him. 

“I just...keep thinking about what would happen if we all stayed in the Vault y’know.” She said, shrugging her uninjured shoulder. Her father sighed and ran a hand down his face. 

“Do you really wanna know what would have happened if we stayed back at the Vault?” He asked softly, raising an eyebrow. Amelia wrapped the jacket around herself tightly before leaning forward and nodding softly. Her father leaned forward, setting his elbows on his desk and intertwining his fingers together.

“If we had all stayed inside the Vault, you would have been made into the second Vault physician, essentially working alongside of me. As well, you and Butch would have been married and forced to have at least 2 kids within 3 years to keep Vault population up.” He told her, laying his hands flat out on the cold steel. Amelia sat there for a few moments, taking everything in and staring softly at her father.

“Well...that’s not that bad...I thought it was gonna be way worse, actually.” She said, chuckling and shaking her head softly. Her father nodded back and went to go and organize his papers. She stayed silent for awhile, just watching him organize. She finally spoke again as he stuck everything in a desk drawer. 

“Somedays I miss the Vault…I mean...It’s great out here sometimes but…It’s was nice not to worry about getting shot…” She chuckled once again before yawning and rubbing her right eye with the back of her hand. Her father stood and walked over to her, setting a hand on her shoulder.

“Come on, sweetheart, let’s get you back to bed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gimme ur sweetroll nosebleed


	14. Chapter 14

Butch and Amelia had returned to Megaton, in hopes to finally help out Moira with her book and fulfill their long overdue promise, when their Pip-Boys began screeching at them loudly. They both loaded up their screens and flicked around to find a new signal had popped up in their radio frequencies. It read “Vault 101 emergency frequence.” Butch wanted to shrug it off but Amelia was persistent enough that she played it despite his pleas for her not to. He wanted nothing to do with the Vault anymore but she still had a heart. 

“This is an automated distress message from Vault-Tec: Vault 101. Message begins: It feels like you left home a long time ago, but I know you're still out there. I just hope you're still alive to hear this. Things got worse after you left. My father's gone mad with power. If you can hear this, please stop looking for your dad and help stop mine. I changed the door password to my name. If you're hearing this, and if you still care enough to help me, you should remember it.”

Amelia immediately recognized the voice coming from her Pip-Boy speakers to be that of Amata’s. Her childhood best friend sounded so sad, so helpless. It physically pained her to hear her best friend so lost. She stared at the screen as the message began to repeat itself, the upset words of Amata filling the silence between Amelia and Butch. She looked at Butch and opened her mouth to speak before he cut her off. 

“No. No fucking way. We are not going back to the Vault.” He said, crossing his arms over his chest forcefully. Amelia raised an eyebrow at him and shifted her weight to her back foot before setting her hands on her hips. 

“Who ever said anything about we?” She retorted, getting short with him, shifting her weight to her back foot as she stuck one hip out and crossed her arms over her chest. He frowned at her, his face hardening with anger.

“Are you fucking nuts? Do you know what they’ll do to you if you go back? They’ll have you killed!” He yelled at her, bringing the attention of a few people passing by who talked in hushed tones as they hurried past. 

“Look, that’s where I grew up. That’s where WE grew up. We’ve known all those people since we were born, we have to help them, Butch.” She tried to persuade him, giving him those puppy dog eyes of hers and for once it didn’t work. He would not back down on his anti going back to the vault stance . 

“Yeah, those people tried to kill you when you left the first time. Don’t you think they’ll try it again if you go back?” He asked her, some of his hair falling out of line as he angrily flailed his arms around. Amelia sighed, and took her key ring out of her pocket, taking off the one to her house here in Megaton. 

“If you’re not coming with, then stay here. Here’s the key to my house. I’ll be back in a day or two.” She said, setting the key in his hands. He sighed, frustrated as he slicked his hair back, a scowl on his face with his eyebrows knitted in anger. 

“Fine, what the fuck ever.” He told her, crossing his arms over his chest again. She kissed his cheek, told him she loved him and left to deal with the trouble on the homefront.

***

They had to drag Amelia out of the Vault kicking, screaming and crying. She had gone back to help her old friends in their most desperate hour and when she had solved the Vaults problems, her best friend, or who she thought was her best friend, had banished her from the Vault, making sure she could never come back to the place she had called home for 19 years. They dumped her in the dirt outside of the old rickety wooden door and locked it behind her, leaving her to wallow in her own self pity. She screamed and cried as she banged on the door with her fists, running them raw and bloody. After awhile she stopped and just sat in the dirt after her voice had gone hoarse and her hands and arms were streaked with drying blood and burning cuts. 

She doesn’t remember how long she sat there, staring at the wooden door streaked with her blood. She must have been gone for quiet awhile because Butch ended up coming to look for her. He found her, eyes half opened and glazed over, her arms and hands almost completely covered with blood and tear tracks staining her cheeks as she laid in the dirt outside of the Vault. He sighed and picked her up in his arms and headed back for Megaton.

When she woke up back in her bed in Megaton her head was reeling, her throat was raw and her arms were stinging. She sat up and groaned immediately, having to put her head in between her legs before she vomited. As she regained her stomach, the fog in her mind cleared and she remembered the events of days prior. She remembered being greeted by Officer Armstrong once she entered and she had to navigate her way through a half destroyed Vault she once called home. Amata was so happy to see her, unlike everyone else who spat half muttered remarks at her as she passed by but even after Amelia fixed everything and no one was killed, Amata still banished her from the vault. Sure, she saw that she didn’t really want to but it still stung like a bitch. She still remembers watching as Amata’s tear stained face faded from her sight as she was dragged away, her feet dragging against the steel floors as she screamed at the top of her lungs. The image hit her right in the heart and she let out a sad cry that stung her raw throat. 

“God...I should have listened to Butch.” She muttered under her breath softly, tears staining the pants of her vault suit. 

“Yeah, you should have, Nosebleed.” Amelia’s head snapped up and Butch stood in her doorway, a bottle of water in one hand and a bowl of Blamco Mac and Cheese in the other. The smell lingered in her nose, bringing to mind painful memories that made her throat and eyes swell but her stomach was empty and craving the artificial cheese and noodles in the bowl in Butch’s hand. He walked over and set both of them in her bandaged palms before sitting down next to her. 

“Now, you wanna tell me why I found you outside of the Vault, bloody and half conscious almost 3 days after you left me here?” He asked, staring at her and raising an eyebrow. She could tell he hadn’t slept for a second after she stranded him in Megaton. His voice was deeper and more gravely, his hair unruly and without gel and deep, purple bags had began to form under his cerulean eyes 

Amelia went into a long and detailed account of her travel back home. It took her an hour to tell him everything, not leaving out a single detail as she recalled her trip while eating. When she finished, they sat in silence as Butch took it all in while Amelia sipped her water. 

“So, was my mom still drunk off her ass?” He asked, cracking a grin, bringing humor to painful memories. Amelia giggled, a bit of water dripping out as her lips spread into a soft smile. She wrapped her hands around her water bottle and sighed softly before looking at him. 

“Thanks for coming and getting me, Butch. Even after I ditched you here.” She told him, looking at him with sympathetic eyes. He leaned over and kissed her cheek, grinning that famous 100 watt grin that could have powered the entire vault. 

“Of course. I mean, what would you do without ol’ Butch helpin’ you out?” He chuckled, still grinning. 

***

“Thrrreeee Dooooggg! That's me, kids. Comin' to you taped from my fortified bunker in the middle of a D.C. hellhole. Ain't life grand? Seems we've got - dadadadada - a bit of news, Just listen to this! Who says you can't go home again, huh? The kid from Vault 101 did, but it looks like the prodigal daughter's return didn't last all that long. She was seen entering the Vault again only to be dragged out a short time later. I don’t really care what happened in there but listen, Amelia, kid, you got a good thing goin’ for you out here. Sure, it ain’t no Vault but you’ve made the Wasteland a less shitty place, hell, you gave us all free, clean water for god’s sake! You’re our last, best hope for humanity, so I beg you, for all of us, stay out here and help us restore a little more faith, okay?And now, some music.It's the "First Lady of Song" herself, Miss Ella Fitzgerald, telling us that, "Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall." Ain't that the truth, sister?”

The Galaxy News Radio broadcast cut back to music, leaving Amelia with a gaping hole in her heart that was slowly becoming filled as she thought about what Three Dog had said. He was right, it was no Vault but it was better than that damn Vault. Out here she had everything she ever wanted. She had her dad, Butch, the sunlight beating down on her. She had been thrust out into the Wasteland as scared, shaking child looking for her father and now she was a hardened fighter and as Three Dog had called her “The Last, Best Hope For Humanity.” She didn't need the Vault and it obviously didn't need her. Sure, she would get homesick from time to time but a quick reminder of the horrors of Vault Tech turned everything back to normal. She was better off being out in the Wastes where she was loved, accepted and idolized, not in some stuffy metal prison with a crazy Overseer and people who didn’t even like her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact my mom has listened to me and my father play the fallout games so much she has come to love three dog and she rlly hates mr new vegas. why? im not quiet sure...


	15. Chapter 15

“Hey, do you see that?”

“See what?”

“That old wooden bridge.” 

Amelia and Butch were out wandering north of Big Town when they found an old rickety wooden bridge with a caravan outside of it. They both holstered their weapons and approached the caravan. They traded with Crazy Wolfgang before crossing the bridge and through a passage of rocks to find a small rusted shack and a half torn down radio tower. They looked at each other before nodding as Amelia went and opened the door. 

They entered to find an old woman sitting in the corner of the small shack. She stood and approached the two, smiling. 

“My my my. You two certainly do look a little worn out from your travels.” She said, clasping her hands together in front of her before blushing and shaking her head, “Oh, just look at my terrible manners! I’m Agatha. It’s so nice to meet you both. Now, what brings you two all the way out here?” She asked, still smiling sweetly. Amelia stood there for a few seconds baffled before she shook her head and smiled herself. 

“I’m Amelia, this is Butch,” She told Agatha, jabbing a thumb back in Butch’s direction as he waved at her, “We’re just exploring.” Agatha stumbled passed them and sat down in another chair in the corner next to the door and a table holding a ham radio. 

“Honestly, there’s not much out here. Looking for sand? Rocks? We have plenty of that. You’re welcome to look around of course. Don’t let me dissuade you, I’m just trying to save you some time. My husband built this place way out here for a reason, bless his soul.” She said, sighing softly and setting one hand on her lap the other on her chest before crossing her fingers in a cross over her shoulders and head. 

“I take it you don’t get many visitors then.” Butch replied before Amelia could give her condolences over the woman’s dead husband. 

“Apart from the supply caravans, you two are the first people to set foot inside my house in a long time. It’s not for lack of trying mind you, I’m just far off the beaten path…Living in this isolation protects me, but it has also made me very lonely.” Agatha admitted, sighing again and looking quiet sad at that fact. Amelia frowned, also saddened by the idea of an old widow living out her final days in some hidden dusty corner of the Wasteland. 

“Listen, Agatha, is there anything Butch and I could do for you?” 

***

“You’re too nice, you know that?” Butch called after her as she trekked in front of him, assault rifle in her hands. She looked back at him and raised her eyebrow. 

“Oh yeah, what makes you say that?” She asked, stopping and letting him catch up to him. He looked at her and shook his head. 

“You gotta complicate our lives by volunteering to get anything anyone offers us caps for. ” He told her, wrapping one arm around her shoulder, letting his gun dangle in his other hand. She chuckled and shook her head. 

“Sorry for not being one of the many assholes out here in post apocalyptia.” She retorted, still chuckling softly before rolling her eyes. 

“You know thats not what I meant, Nosebleed. It’s just, what if the violin ain’t even there?” He asked, running his fingers through her slightly tangled hair. 

“Well, then we can say it was all worth the experience.” She told him, looking over and smiling cheekily. He chuckled and nodded. 

“Alright, whatever.” He said nonchalantly, still playing with her hair. They walked alone in silence for awhile, before Butch piped up again. 

“Y’know, you oughta let me cut your hair one of these days.” He said, rolling a group of locks between his fingers. She pulled away and glared at him, frowning with her eyebrows furrowed.

“Oh no, the last time you messed with my hair it was when you replaced my shampoo with red hair dye!” She said, running a hand through her chestnut coloured hair, “It took me a month to get it all to wash out.” She pouted, playing with the ends of her hair. Butch laughed and just ran a hand through her tresses again. 

“That was hilarious! But come on, I was a barber for god's sake, no one else more qualified out in the Wastes than me to cut those pretty locks of yours.” He told her, kissing his cheek. 

“Maybe when we’re done with this mission.” 

***

Vault 92 was filled with mirelurks and if it wasn’t for Amelia finding that terminal with the white nose starter, they would have ended up as mince meat. While she no longer feared most of the Wastelands creatures, the mutated crabs sent chills down her spine. As they traveled through the Vault they learned it held the world's greatest musicians at the time and the experiment put on them was to try and create “super soldiers” by subjecting them to white noise containing subliminal messages and it sort of worked out. Half of the residence became horribly violent and tore the other half of them apart. Luckily for Amelia and Butch, they didn’t have to spend too much time in the Vault. They found the Soil Stradivarius inside the Sound Testing room and were easily on their way back to Agatha’s house. 

Amelia walked along the broken streets away from Old Olney, the violin in her hands as Butch trekked a few steps in front of her, gun locked and loaded. He glanced towards the half fortified, half destroyed Old Olney as they walked. 

“Hey, Nosebleed, what’s the story with that town?” He said, nodding his head in the direction of the fading. crumbled buildings and giant makeshift fence made of scrap wood and metal. She raised her eyebrow as she glanced back at them before looking back ahead at him. 

“That’s Old Olney, they say it’s infested with Deathclaws.” He stopped and looked back at her, eyebrows raised, fear bubbling in his chest just at the name of the creature. 

“The fuck is a Deathclaw?” He asked as she began to walk at his side, violin case swinging softly. She sighed and recalled the information she had been told by one of the Scribes at the Citadel. During her stays at the compound she often pestered the knowledgeable men and women for anything they could tell her, flooding her brain with almost useless information.

“It’s said they’re extreme mutations of old world chameleons. They stand at least 10 feet tall, they’ve got long razor sharp claws, hence the name, and they’re fast, territorial, and nearly impossible to kill.” She informed him, kicking a large piece of crumbling highway with the toe of her boot. He looked back at the almost completely out of sight Old Olney and checked his gun ammo. 

“Let’s never fuck around in Old Olney, then, eh?” He chuckled nervously, running his hands through his hair before reaching into his pocket to grab a cigarette.

***

They decided to poke around North of Canterbury Commons before returning to Agatha's house to give her the violin. Mostly they found rundown buildings and dust just like anywhere else in the Waste until they stumbled upon a little neighborhood filled with mostly destroyed houses except for one large one. They stood out at the gate and Amelia shook it a couple of times before the loud cocking of a gun and a voice drew their attention skyward. 

“Hey! What’s your business strangers” called a woman armed with an assault rifle from the upper floor of the crumbling building. 

“We were just looking around...maybe a do some trading.” Amelia called back up at her, before looking over to Butch who pursed his lips together.

“Hannibal says I gotta let folks like ya’ll in, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. Keep your hands in sight and don’t make any sudden moves. I’m coming down to open the gate.” She said, disappearing behind the wall and leaving them alone. Butch sighed and wrapped an arm around her softly. 

“Nice way to great us, eh?” He joked, chuckling. Amelia rolled her eyes skyward as the woman reappeared and unlocked the gate before swinging it open. 

“Hannibal is upstairs somewhere. I’m locking the door behind ya’ll so don’t you try anything. I’m watching ya’ll” 

Amelia and Butch were let inside and spent the next our learning about what was called the Temple of the Union, a group of runaway slaves idolizing former US President, Abraham Lincoln. They traded for a bit before thanking them for their kindness and leaving. They were half way down the street when Amelia stopped dead in her tracks as Butch was fiddling with his Pip-Boy. He stopped a few paces down from be before looking up and raising an eyebrow. Amelia stood staring off into the distance, her mouth gaping open and her eyes wide. 

“Hey, earth to nosebleed.” He called, back at her. She just stared before shaking her head softly, her eyebrows furrowing together. 

“It…can’t be…” She muttered as Butch walked back over to her, setting his hand on her shoulder. Then after a few more moments, Amelia laughed and broke into a large grin before dropping her gun and heading into a sprint down the broken street. 

“Suzy! Oh my god!” She screamed as she hugged the blonde beauty in front of her. Butch dropped his own jaw before picking up Amelia’s gun from the ground and running over to her. She stood there, embraced with Suzy Mack. The tall blonde pulled away, setting her hands on Amelia’s shoulders, a grin just as wide as her’s spreading across her face. 

“Wow, who would have thought I’d run into you two out here? It’s a small world, but not as small as the Vault I guess.” Both girls giggled, Suzy’s hands slipping from Amelia’s shoulders as she crossed them over her chest. 

“Good to see you, Suzy! Looks like you’re doing well.” She gestured to the overloaded backpack and rifle slung on her back as well as the extra protective additions on her vault suit.

“Thanks! The whole Vault’s doing pretty well.” She exclaimed, brushing her blonde hair out of her face with the wave of a palm, “I’m just out taking care of a little trading right now, but they’ve got the place in much better shape than when you left” She smiled, setting her hands on her hips.

“Does that mean I can come back?” Amelia asked like a small child filled with hope but a certain type of wariness lingering in their question. 

“I'm sorry, but that still can't happen. As much as we owe you, there are still a lot of people who blame you for all the deaths. It's not fair, I know, but it's the way it is. I know Amata still misses you.” Suzy set her hand on her shoulder, squeezing it apologetically, a sad smile replacing the excited grin from just moments before. Amelia nodded solemnly, understanding why she couldn’t return but still upset at the fresh wound in her heart.

“I miss her, too. Give my warmest regards to the Vault, would you?” She looked at her with hopeful eyes and a soft smile. 

“Oh, I will. They'll be glad to hear from you. Oh, and here: have some fresh water from the Vault.” She pulled forth from her belt a clear water bottle, brand new and freshly filled. She set it in her hands and smiled softly, “I guess it's pretty hard to find it out here, and maybe it'll be a taste of home for you. Take care out here, and thanks again.” Suzy hugged her hard and long before turning around and trekking off, giving them one last wave before disappearing over the horizon. 

***

Agatha was more than appreciative of the two of them once they returned with not only the Soil Stradivarius but sheet music as well. She expressed her struggle to find things to play on her violin, Amelia thoroughly understood her search for music, having spent 2 hours looking for vinyl records not to long ago. Their generosity and thoughtfulness earned them a unique and deadly scoped .44 magnum named Blackhawk. She told them it was her husband's but since she had nothing to use it for, it would be better in their hands. They got to listen to her debut her new song on the old world rarity. The song was soft and soulful, filled with raw emotion and dedication, showing Amelia and Butch that Agatha truly loved playing the violin. Had this been the Pre-War era, this women would have been a music prodigy and loved throughout the world. After Agatha finished her private performance, she thanked the both of them and told them to come by anytime they needed. Amelia hugged her, Butch waved and they were both on their way.


	16. Chapter 16

"Men and ladies, boys and girls, prepare to be astounded, bedazzled, and otherwise stupefied! I am Three Dog, your master of ceremonies! Seems we've got - dadadadada - a bit of news, Just listen to this! Now, the Lone Wanderer's, aka those kids from Vault 101, have done some pretty interesting things, but this one takes the cake. My contacts report that they recently went on a highly dangerous excursion to recover -drum roll please- a violin. Oh, but not just any ol' violin, children... We're talking Stradivarius here. That's one top o' the line fiddle, you dig? Here's the best part. The violin was for an old woman named Agatha, who has taken to the airwaves herself to share some truly beautiful music. Agatha, we love ya. Keep playin', sister. And Vault kids? Y'all have helped make the Capital Wasteland a better place. Hats off, my friends. Until next time, this is Three Dog, OWWWWWWWWW! And you're listening to Galaxy News Radio! Bringing you the truth, no matter how bad it hurts. Up next is Roy Brown, tellin' us all about that, "Mighty Mighty Man" "

 

Amelia smiled at her Pip-Boy, content not only with her recent escapade to recover an old world instrument but her rescue of the famous merc group, Reilly's Rangers and even her procuring of Three Dog’s new music. 

“See, Butch, that's why I do these things. To make this world a better place.” She couldn't hold back her smile as she thought of all her kind deeds. Butch just shrugged his shoulders, a glass of whiskey occupying one hand while the other absent mindedly ran itself through Dogmeat’s fur. Amelia could sense displeasure on his mind as he sat on the floor of the living room in her Megaton house. 

“Hey, what's wrong?” She asked as she slid off the couch and onto the floor, hugging her knees to her chest. 

“How come Suzy didn't say hi to me?” He asked, pouting heavily with his eyebrows furrowed. He took a swig of the whiskey in his hand before returning to his pout. Amelia thought back, pondering his question. She hasn't realized that her childhood blonde beauty had ignored him. 

“I don't know, maybe she didn't see you.” She shrugged, wrapping her arms around her legs as she pressed one cheek to her knee. Butch blew air out of his nose and shook his head. 

“I'll tell ya why Suzy Mack ignored me.” He threw back the last few gulps of his whiskey, throwing the glass to the ground as he whipped the drops from his lips. “It's Cus I wouldn't date her.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, placing one in between his lips. “Not my fault I'm not cliche and drool after tall blondes like Pauly.” He shook his head and lit up the bud, leaving silence between them as he filled his lungs with nicotine and smoke. 

“Wally didn't like me either.” He choked out, gray wisps floating skyward with each word. “No one in that damn steel prison liked me.” He took another long drag, ash falling onto his pant legs as smoke masked his blue eyes darkened with emotion. 

“Yeah, I understand that feeling.” She chuckled burying her head into her knees. She recalled all those times back in the Vault when she wasn’t invited to sleepovers or birthday parties, almost vividly reliving her tenth birthday party where even Butch made fun of her for not being invited to his birthday party. No matter how nice and helpful she was back in the Vault, she really only had her dad, Jonas and Amata. Her weekend were almost always spent doing work, her only joy coming from Jonas’ jokes and witty remarks. Solace came when Amata asked her to join her at her apartment for the night or a weekend. They would stay up late into the early hours of the morning talking of things from the boys they liked to the history that put them in the Vault. Even with her best friend and father, she was still alone for most of her Vault life. Once Butch came around into her life into a positive way, joy became a regular thing but she was never voted “Vault Queen” or accepted by any of the other boys, not even Freddie who was nice to her when they were kids. Tears threatened to escape from her eyes. For once, she didn't let them cascade down her cheeks. Instead she stood and stepped in front of Butch, putting her hands on her hips with her legs spread apart. 

“Who needs them. They're just some brainwashed idiots living in a cave. In there, we were outcast.” She waved a hand in the air, Butch looking up at her as he blew smoke from his nose and putting out the bud on the bottom of his boot, flicking the end to some unknown corner of the living room. 

“Out here, we're fucking idols, Butch. We can't go ten feet without someone thanking us or smiling at us. This is our home.” She grinned wide and proud of her realization. Butch chuckled and ran his hands through his hair, slicking it back. 

“You've always been an optimist, Nosebleed.” 

***

Rivet City was now becoming a regular stop for Butch and Amelia as they made treks to and from the Citadel. The last time they had stopped off at the rusting, creaking steel tub, Amelia had been begged by a young pretty blonde named Angela Staley to get her Ant Queen Pheromones so she could seduce a priest who was deeply infatuated with her but unable to act for his position in the church. Amelia had almost completely forgotten about her buying and gifting of pheromones to the sneaky vixen. They sat at Gary’s Galley. eating the sludge they passed off as food when none other than Gary, Angela’s father, spoke up. 

“Y’all gonna come to my daughter’s wedding this afternoon?” He asked as he wiped down the counter of splatters of gray broth and clear alcohol. Amelia perked up, dropping her spoon into her bowl of mirelurk stew, splattering liquid all over the freshly cleaned counter. 

“Angela is getting married?” She asked, unable to mask the surprise from her voice as her jaw hung slack in shock. Gary nodded and smiled proudly. 

“Yup, that Deigo finally came to his senses and almost immediately popped the question. Weddin’ is at 3pm. Angela would love to have you there.” He grinned, cleaning up around her bowl to bring the counter back to pristine condition.

“Well, I’ll be there.”

***

The wedding was nothing special or elaborate but when you’re young and in love, you don’t need grandeur, only each other. Butch and Amelia sat in the back row behind what little family each newlywed still had and the friends each of them had gathered over the years. Their vows were sweet and simple, the priest grinning as he pronounced them husband and wife. The young couple nearly jumped into each other's arms, giggling like fools as they showered each other with kisses. The chapel erupted in applause, Amelia grinning at her hard work once again paying off in the best way possible. 

“Hey, Nosebleed.” Butch spoke up as he wrapped his arm around her. He had stayed silent during the entire ceremony, Amelia just assuming he had been bored with the entire thing. She couldn’t have been more wrong. 

“Yeah, what?” She asked, standing and grabbing her stuff, ready to head out and finished their trek to the Citadel. He grabbed her hand, clutching it in between both of his. She spun to meet his gaze which was fixated on her intently. The few moments of silence that followed on was stomach churning and anxiety ridden. Then slowly, Butch dropped to one knee, kneeling in front of her, her tiny left hand encased in his. 

“Amelia, will you marry me?” Amelia’s face flooded with tears almost instantly, her heart pounding so heavily against her ribs she feared they would give under the strength of it’s beating and her heart would leap forth from her chest. She couldn’t muster the words, her tongue feeling like lead in her mouth so instead she nodded frantically, her hair flying around her face. Butch lept to his feet and pulled her into his arms, tears flooding his own face as he twirled her around his circles. After a few moments of pure, unadulterated joy, her set her down and smiled, brushing her hair out of her face. 

“Oh my god, Butch, we’re gonna get married. How are we...when are...who?” She stuttered, thoughts of preparation flooding her mind. Butch just grinned and held his finger up to his mouth to hush her. 

“Hey, Nosebleed, it’s okay, We’ll think of somethin’.” He just grinned at her, his eyes glowing with joy as he looked down on her.


	17. Chapter 17

“Married?! When?!” Her father lept from his desk, every paper that was stacked on the tiny steel island collapsed and scattered to the floor as he stood in awe, his jaw dropping and going slack. 

“We haven’t done it yet but I mean, we’re thinking sometime soon.” Amelia admitted, trying to avoid direct eye contacts with her father who was more than shocked to say the least. Her father collapsed in his chair, holding his head on his hands as he held an intense look of disbelief on his already tired face. 

“I just...what made you two think of this?” He asked, sitting forward and resting his elbows on his knees, still trying to fully understand the sudden bombshell of an announcement. Butch shrugged and dropped into the chair on the opposite side of the desk. 

“We were at a wedding in Rivet City and the idea just kinda popped into my head. I mean we’ve been together for 5 years so I mean, it’s about time y’know.” He shrugged again, sitting up and pulling out a cigarette from his front pocket, setting it in between his lips.

“I mean, it’s not like we’re getting any younger, dad. We live in a dangerous place and the sooner we can call each other husband and wife, the more time we get to spend that way.” Amelia rationalized, taking the seat next to Butch who lit up the end of the cigarette, dragging in nicotine, tar and smoke into his lungs. James put his head in his hands and took in a deep breath, held it for several seconds and then slowly exhaled through his nose before looking up at both of them. 

“Where is it gonna take place? How are you gonna get rings? When is it gonna happen? Whos is going to off--” Amelia held up a hand to silence him, a smile spreading across her face as she chuckled softly. 

“Dad, it’s okay. I’ve already got a plan.” 

***

“Because one dog ain't enough, and two is too low, it's me, Three Dog! How you kids handlin' Post-Apocalyptia today?We interrupt our regularly scheduled program for: SOME NEWS! Do you hear something children? I do. I hear those weddin’ bells ringing yessiree. I’ve gotten reports that our crazy kids from Vault 101 are tying the knot. In a land filled with raiders, super mutants and irradiated mac and cheese, sometimes you have to enjoy the simpler things in this crazy world we live in.I hope all goes well for the newlyweds and hey, Vault kids, I better be on that invite list, ya hear?Until next time, this is Three Dog, OWWWWWWWWW! And you're listening to Galaxy News Radio! Bringing you the truth, no matter how bad it hurts.Now, some music. We’ve got Cole Porter telling us that “Anything Goes”” 

***

It took them almost two weeks to gather everything they needed for their special day. They forked over 100 caps to Father Clifford to convince him to officiate their wedding, they pawned rings off of Moira, begged Bannon of Potomac Attire to make them clothes and asked Three Dog to set up a play list seeing as they wanted him to attend the ceremony. 

When the morning came, Butch and Amelia had hopped for an easy set up. Luckily. life was on their side for once and made for a smooth day. Everyone had come through for the requests the couple had asked for. Father Clifford had found the correct scripture, Moira presented beautiful silver rings that sparkled in the light, Bannon brought a simple white dress and tux as well as a dog collar with a bow tie on it for Dogmeat and the one and only Three Dog showed up with a box wrapped with a red bow. 

Amelia had shut herself in a room just across the hall, her Vault suit discarded into a corner of the old storage closet as she had traded the faded blue and yellow jump suit for a white dress that hugged her waist and bust before fanning out and becoming puffy and filled with tulle at the skirt. She had never felt so beautiful in her life. A knock came to the door and in walked her father, smiling proudly with tears threatening to escape from his tired eyes. 

“You look beautiful Amelia.” He walked over and pulled her into a warm embrace, the tears finally cascading down his cheeks. After the longest moments of his life, James pulled away and back handed tears off his face. He reached over onto the table and pulled the veil into his hands before setting it onto his daughter’s head. James recalled the conversations he overheard from her and Amata when they were children, they would whisper about long white wedding dresses and extravagant cakes and their future husbands before erupting into uncontrolled giggles. James watched his little girl grow from a tiny chubby cheeked angel with braided pigtails who practiced her “doctoring” on her stuffed teddy bear Mr. Snuggles into a beautiful, powerful woman with those same chubby cheeks who now could stitch a wound in a few seconds with eerie precision. The baby he once held in his hands had gone from a little girl who dreamed of sunflowers, stethoscopes and a family of her own to a fighter who had changed the Capital Wasteland for the better and had become regarded as a Shepherd to the people in this post apocalyptic world. And as she stood in front of him clad in white silk, tulle and lace, she had never looked more beautiful.

“I’m sorry for having been so skeptical of this ceremony earlier. I guess I just hadn’t realized how fast you had grown up.” He admitted, rubbing the back of his head, his cheeks turning pink and flustered with embarrassment. Amelia giggled and shook her head. 

“It’s okay, dad, I woulda been shocked too.” She giggled again, brushing a few strands of chestnut locks behind her ear.

“You really do make the most beautiful bride,sweetheart.” He told her, pulling the veil over her head. She smiled softly, kissing his cheek. 

“Thanks, Dad. I wouldn’t be here without you.” She told him, clutching his hands in hers. He nodded softly, smiling as well as he squeezed her hands gently. 

At noon, the ceremony started. Throughout the PA system of Rivet City, Tex Beneke sang of that “Wonderful Guy” which alerted both James and Amelia that it was time. Wrapping her hands around her father’s outstretched arm, they both shuffled out of the tiny storage closet and into the chapel. It was lit up like a Christmas tree inside of the tiny room, making it stand out from it’s normal dim lighting. In the pews, the friends Amelia had gathered along her travels occupied the seats, happy to see the girl who had helped them in one endeavor or other be able to have such a joyous occasion. Moira, Gob, Moriarty and Lucas Simms had trekked all the way from Megaton. Elder Lyons and Scribe Rothchild sat by the entirety of Reilly’s Rangers. Doctor Li and the other scientists from the purifier crammed into the same pew as the newlyweds Diego and Angela. Doctor Barrows and Nurse Graves shared almost an entire spot with Fawkes who took up most of the bench. Finally, in the front row sat Agatha with her Soil Stradivarius, Three Dog, an empty space and on the end was a framed picture of her mother. 

James kissed his daughter’s forehead through her silk veil at the front of the altar before taking his spot next to the famous disc jockey. Amelia finally stood in front of Butch in his pressed suit and a sly smile playing on his lips. Tex Beneke slowly died out and left the room silent except for ragged breathing and shuffling feet. Father Clifford looked up and smiled, a bible laid out perfectly in one hand, the other pressed to his chest as a smile flicked across his wrinkled face. 

 

“Now, today’s ceremony will be short as per request by the bride and groom. But before we get to the I Do’s, I believe each party has prepared a set of vows. Butch, would you like to go first?” Father Clifford gestured to Butch who nodded softly before pulling out a piece of paper folded over a dozen times that was covered with messy scrawled handwriting. Clearing his throat, Butch spoke up, reading from the faded and crumbled paper. 

“Amelia, I know that you are too good for me. You are kind, selfless, strong, smart and drop dead gorgeous. And I thank whatever force in this god forsaken world has given you to me. I remember once as a kid back in the Vault, I tripped and fell during little league and you came over, put bandaids on my scraped hands and kissed them to make them all better. I think that was the day I fell in love with you. I regret every moment I spent tormenting you as a child instead of loving you. But now, I’m makin’ up for that by standing at this altar right now. I don’t think there is another person on the face of this radiated earth that could make me feel the way you do. Nosebleed, I gotta hand it to you, you drive this Tunnel Snake crazy.” He grinned like a goof as he folded his paper back up, stashing it in his tux pocket. The crowd giggled and clapped, smiling just as much as Butch. Father Clifford stifled his own chuckle before looking to Amelia. 

“Now, Amelia, you may say your vows.” He nodded at her, the once faint smile on his face having grown into a gigantic grin that spread from ear to ear. Amelia looked down at her feet before back up at Butch, locking eyes with him. 

“Butch, you’re a selfish, stubborn jackass. And I couldn’t love you more. We grew up together and soon, I began dreaming of a life with you but those dreams don’t even compare to the reality I’m living right now. We live in a crazy world where each day could be our last but with you, it feels like I could live on for centuries. When I first was thrust out here into the big bad Wasteland, the thing that was the hardest for me was the fear that I would never see you again. Yet here you are, dressed in the nicest clothes I’ll ever see you in, marrying me. So I would like to thank God for giving me this second chance at happiness and you, Tunnel Snake, for making me so angry the night of prom that I punched you in the face and then slept with you.” Amelia grinned, chuckling, her vows making the entire crowd erupt with laughter as Butch’s face turned red. Father Clifford also had a pink face as he tugged on the collar of his shirt. The crowd slowly fell back into silence as Father Clifford held up his hand to continue the ceremony. 

“Ah yes, now, do you two have rings?” He asked, smoothing out the pages of his bible. Butch grinned and nodded, pulling his fingers to his lips and whistling a tune. Muffled barking came from the hall and in trotted none other than Dogmeat, a pillow with rings gripped in his mouth with the bowtie dog collar around his neck. Awe’s and chuckles came from the guests as the pooch parked his behind in front of the couple, tail going full speed. Each of them grabbed the other’s ring before patting the mutt’s head in congratulations. 

“Do you, Butch, take Amelia as your lawful wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part” Father Clifford looked up from his scripture book and connected eyes with Butch who nodded at him then looking at Amelia, smiling as he slipped the ring on her finger. 

“I do.” He shifted his weight around, pulling the collar of his tux and craning his neck. Father Clifford nodded and closed his eyes before looking back down at the faded and folded pages of his bible. 

“Do you, Amelia, take Butch as your lawful wedded husband,to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part” Amelia looked down at her feet and shuffled them before looking up at Butch, his eyes wide and hopeful. 

“I do.” She slipped the ring over his knuckles and to the base of his ring finger, a smile growing across her face and all of the faces of every audience member. Father Clifford nodded and closed his book with a soft thud before placing one hand on his heart and the other crossing over both of their bodies in a wide cross. 

“Then, by the power invested in me by our Lord and Saint Monica, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride.” Amelia lept into Butch’s arms which wrapped around her waist as he lifted her off the ground. Amelia threw off her veil and pressed her lips against his. The guests stood and clapped, some cheered while others cried as Butch spun the both of them in circles, their lips still firmly pressed together. 

***

“People of the Capital Wasteland! It is I, Three Dog, your ruler! Hear me, and, obey! Oh, sorry, that's that, OTHER, radio station.Got lots of stuff goin' down in Post Apocalyptia these days. Here some of the latest news. Just yesterday our Capital Wasteland’s very own Lone Wanderer’s from Vault 101 went and got hitched. I guess you could consider it a shotgun wedding since everyone in the crowd was packing heat. Loaded weapons or not, the ceremony was surprisingly moving and you’ll never guess what yours truly did. Yes oh yes children, I left the safety of my fortified bunker in the heart of D.C. and traveled all the Rivet City to see our vault cats tie the knot. Amelia, Butch, I wish the best to both of you in your endeavors together in this crazy world. Keep on rocking, kids. Next, some music. In honor of our famous newlyweds, up next is Billie Holiday telling how it is when you’re Easy Livin;”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what was in the present three dog brought them? ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


	18. Chapter 18

Amelia and Butch slept in their home back in Megaton, their limbs tangled together as Butch’s snoring ragged on, both Amelia and Dogmeat somehow able to sleep peacefully through what sounded like a knife in a garbage disposal in a kitchen sink. She dreamt that night of the moments mentioned the day before of her youth in the vault. 

An 8 year old Amelia stood in the outfield of the baseball diamond in the Vault. Dressed in her Little League uniform and pigtails, she paid attention to anything but the game happening in front of her. She was a better hitter than a catcher so back here she was useless. All that changed when she heard yelling and a loud thud. She turned to see Butch on the ground, tears gathering in his eyes as Wally laughed at him. The coach called his name and pointed to the bench, a frown forming on his face. Butch stood and dusted the dirt of his knees, tears of pain and humiliation stinging in his eyes as he scuttled to the bench, his head hung down in shame. Just then the coach blew the whistle and the game paused for half time. Most kids sat down and talked with their friends or stood in line waiting for water. Amelia looked over to the bench to find only Butch left on it, tears staining his pant legs. Amelia looked around and took off her catching mitt, trotting over. He looked up at her and frowned, looking away in an attempt to hide his tears. 

“What do you want, Nosebleed?” He harped at her, crossing his arms over his chest and flinching when his palms made contact with his shirt. Amelia tilted her head to the side and got down on her knees, rummaging through her pockets and pulling out a handful of band aid, all colored green, Butch’s favorite color. 

“Let me see your hands.” She told him, unwrapping the bandages. For once, Butch didn’t have a rude remark or insult to throw at her, instead he just held out his hands, palm faces skyward. Amelia smiled and placed green band aids on every scrape she saw. After she was done she stashed the wrappers in her pockets and placed a soft kiss on each hand. 

“There, all better.” She smiled and stood just as the coach blew his whistle again, resuming the game. 

Amelia, aged 16, stood in her room, staring at herself in the mirror that ran the length of her door. Staring at herself in the mirror, Amelia stood on dark blue heels that matched the dark blue halter dress that clung to her chest and stomach, fanning out at her hips and ran down to her knees, silver sparkles were dotted on the dress giving the illusion of stars that caught the light she she moved. Her hair was curled and bouncy at her shoulders and she sported cat eyeliner so sharp it could cut a person with her plump lips painted classic red. Despite how good she looked, she felt the best friend standing behind her looked better. Amata had on a dress that matched the exact same design but instead of blue it was red and made the Overseer’s daughter look like a bombshell. Amelia ran her hands down her skirt to smooth out the non existent wrinkles. Amata trotted over, gripping her best friend’s shoulders and smiling wide. 

“You looked drop dead gorgeous, darling.” She told her, running her hair through Amelia’s tight ringlet curls. She shook her head and smiled softly. 

“That’s easy for you to say, you look like one of those Pre War models in all those magazines we read.” Amata shook her head and looked at the both of them in the mirror, resting her head on her shoulder. 

“We’re both gonna give these boys a heart attack.” She told her, kissing Amelia’s cheek and grabbing her hand, leading her out of her room. In very opportune time, a loud knock came at the door. Amelia’s stomach flipped over on itself and her chest seemed to tighten as Amata dragged her to the door, swinging it open. In the doorway stood Freddie Gomez in a pressed suit, bowtie and all, a wide grin on his face as he held his hand out for Amata to take. Next to him stood Butch DeLoria in black dress pants, boots, a white button up and his signature Tunnel Snake leather jacket. A grin spread across lips that held a burning cigarette as he leaned up against the door frame. 

“Well, ain’t you a sight for sore eyes, kitten.” He pulled her into his arms, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “Let’s get rockin’”

The Vault Dance went well, Amata, Amelia and Suzy all giggled and danced as the boys danced along, cracking dirty and juvenile jokes. Amelia and Butch shared a few slow dances and sweet pecks but her stomach was still tied in knots, anxious over some grave event yet to happen. Then, as they were leaving, it happened. The crowd was clearing out of the dance hall, Amata pulled Amelia along, Freddie pulling Amata when suddenly, Amelia realized she was missing Butch. She wiggled her hand free from her best friend’s death grip and turned to go search for the missing Tunnel Snake. When she re entered the hall she found Butch and Suzy arguing loudly but not loud enough for her to hear. they didn’t notice her as she hovered near the doorway. The next few seconds seemed to carry on for what felt like years. Suzy lept forward and kissed Butch long and hard. Amelia watched for only a second before turning on her heels and running out of the hall, still going unnoticed by the two.  
She leaned up against the wall by the doorway, her heart sinking deep down in her stomach, her entire form shaking. She heard more arguing before Suzy stormed out of the hall, not even acknowledging Amelia standing near. Moments later Butch walked out, cooler than ever and as if nothing had happened. Amelia almost immediately confronted him, standing in front of him and crossing her arms over her chest. 

“What the fuck was that, Butch?” She asked, seething with rage, her face contorting into that of a scowl. Butch raised his eyebrows, acting like he had no clue in hell what she was talking about. 

“What do you mean, kitten?” He asked, shrugging and setting his hands on his hips. 

“Oh you know full well what I mean. You kissed Suzy Mack!” She screeched, tears finally escaping her cheeks. Butch’s eyes went wide and he held up his hands in defense. 

“Wait just a second, I can expla-” 

“Fuck you, Butch!” She yelled, bawling up her hand into a fist and connecting it with his face, punching him hard across the cheek. He groaned, blood flying out of his mouth and nose. Butch cupped his cheek, his face turning red as he glared at her, rage burning behind his eyes. 

“God damn it, Nosebleed! I didn’t fucking kiss Suzy! She kissed me!” He shouted, wiping the blood off of his lips and nose, an angry red welt forming on his left cheek. “I ain’t like that, aight? I love you and only you and I’m not trying to fuck around, especially with some blonde bitch.” He held his hand to his cheek, glaring at the short woman in front of him. If Amelia hadn’t been crying before, she was now. She broke down into blubbering sobs and hiccups as she threw her arms around Butch, tears flooding her cheeks. He sighed and pulled his arms around her, stroking her head. She eventually calmed down, the tears drying out but leaving her hiccuping and shaky. A few moments later, she broke away. 

“Let’s g-go get you some i-ice…” She stuttered, grabbing his right hand and leading him to the medical office. It was late, almost midnight as Amelia unlocked the door and swung it open, flipping on a few lights. Amelia gestured to the gurney sitting in the side of the room as she unlocked the other door at the back of the room and closing the door behind her. Butch sighed and threw off his jacket before pulling himself up onto the gurney, swinging his feet as he waited. Moments later Amelia came out with a bag of ice wrapped in a towel with an old rag thrown over her shoulder. She handed him the rag and held the ice against his swollen and red cheek. He flinched at the chill touching the hot side of his face as he held the rag to his bleeding nose. 

“I’m sorry I over reacted.” She muttered, dropping her head and sniffling, her body shaking once again. Butch sighed and folded the rag over, keeping it pressed to his nose as his free hand reached forward and stroked her hair, twisting large curls around his fingers. 

“It’s okay, Amelia, I woulda done the same thing, honestly.” He chuckled, cupping her cheek and pulling her head up so she could look at him. Tears swelled in her eyes as she looked up at him. Slowly the tears seemed to disappear and a smile cracked across her bright red lips as she began giggling.

“Guess I should start callin’ you, Nosebleed.” She laughed, pointing at the bloody rag pressed to his nose. Butch stared at her blankly for a few moments before laughing and shaking his head, pulling the rag from his now clean nose. 

“Come here, kitten.” He threw the rag to the floor and wrapped his arms around her waist and pulling her onto his lap. Her face went bright red matching the color that was painted on her lips. Amelia stared into Butch’s eyes, the sparkling cerulean orbs glinted with flecks of green in the light. Butch leaned forward and pressed his lips against her softly at first, making sure to respect any boundaries she had up. She kissed back just as gently for a few moments before running her hands through his slicked up hair and kissing him heavily, pressing her chest against his. Butch let out a soft groan as he wrapped his arms around the small of her back, pulling her up more onto his lap. She gasped and hand pressed against his chest as his hands trailed up her spine, finding the zipper to her dress and yanking it down in one swift motion. They broke their kiss yet kept their faces hovering just inches from each other, both feeling the other’s hot breath on them. Butch slowly slipped the straps down her arms and pulling down the top of her dress. Her face lit up a vibrant red again, invoking a chuckle from Butch. 

“God, Amelia, you’re drop dead gorgeous”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've spent so much time reminiscing about amelia and butch as kids back in the vault it's insane...


	19. Chapter 19

After their wedding, Amelia and Butch took some time off from offering helping hands and doing fetch quests to wander the Capital Wasteland. They took the clothes on their backs, enough supplies to care for an army and their guns, locked and loaded. They followed winding roads and dirt paths, chatting and laughing and throwing sticks for Dogmeat to catch, all of them enjoying the new scenery. Sure, it was dead, brown and filled to the brim with radiation but when you spend your whole life in a steel underground Vault the dead trees and giant scorpions seem like paradise. Yet, true paradise was just on the horizon. 

“Men and ladies, boys and girls, prepare to be astounded, bedazzled, and otherwise stupefied! I am Three Dog, your master of ceremonies!Let me ask ya something children, are you hungry for some two-hundred year old Salisbury steak? Or are you hungry for some news? I'm guessing news, here ya go.Here's a question for all you faithful listeners. Have you guys and gals ever seen... a tree? No, no, no. Not those shriveled black things. I’m talking real trees. Brown bark, green leaves, photosynthesis, all that good stuff. Now what if I, the all-powerful Three Dog, were to tell you that somewhere right here in the Capital Wasteland, there’s a place, with LOTS of trees. A veritable Oasis of green, in that depressing sea of brown. Look, it was years ago, and I MAY have been experimenting with jet at the time, but I’m telling you, it’s out there...Up next, we've got a public service announcement. Listen up, children. This stuff's important.Don't feed the yao guai. That is all. Up next is Roy Brown, tellin' us all about that, "Mighty Mighty Man"."

Butch chuckled and stuck a cigarette between his lips, pulling a match out of its box and striking it on it’s side with a swift motion before lighting the tip of the bud aflame and breathing in the toxins. 

“Of course Three Dog is an former chem addict. He seems like the type.” He chuckled again and shook his head, storing away the matches in his front pocket. Amelia raised her eyebrow at him, skeptical. 

“What, you don’t think there could be a place filled with trees and stuff out there?” She asked, staring at him. Butch laughed, smoke billowing out of his mouth as he did so. 

“No fucking way, that’s ridiculous” He told her, taking another long drag off the cigarette before dropping the burning bud to the ground. “This place was nuked 200 years ago and we still got radiation up the ass. There is no way in hell we’ve got green trees and bushes growin’ around here.” He laughed again, pouring the rest of the smoke out of his mouth, shaking his head. Amelia frowned and pulled out her Blackhawk which was positioned neatly on her thigh. She looked through the scope, scanning the mountains in front of them on the horizon. They stayed silent for another moment or two before Amelia stopped and handed Butch the gun. 

“There, look.” She said, pointing high up into the North Eastern mountain passes. Butch rolled his eyes and took the gun from her, looking through the scope. Far, far off in the distance he saw it. Among the giant rocks of brown and more brown was a little cove that spilled bushes and trees and leaves out of it’s entrance, a door made of wood logs blocking it’s opening. Butch lowered the gun, his jaw dropping in astonishment.

“Holy fucking shit.” Was all he could muster as he handed her back his gun and collapsed to the ground, sitting with his legs pulled up. Amelia grinned and followed his lead, pulling her bag between her curled up legs. 

“Former chem addict or not, Three Dog always knows what he’s talking about.”

 

***

Their final goal was to reach this so called Oasis of trees and life. It took them two days to reach the encampment but when they finally did, they were greeted by a man called Father Birch who was dressed in brown rags covered in twigs and leaves. They were graciously led inside where they met all of the other people living inside Oasis. They didn’t care about the people, they were just there for the plants. The air smelled fresh and clean as the leaves which covered almost every spot above them filtered in sunlight in small soft shaft that beamed to the floor. Everything was made of wood and plant life which just added to it’s natural feel. They were forced to drink some type of liquid that would make them one of the followers of this beautiful place. It made them feel woozy and they seemed to loose multiple minutes of their life but they woke up staring at the beautiful leaves and sunlight, listening to the sounds of running water and rustling branches. Both of them felt at peace as they stared up at the sky, their breathing connected in unison as they closed their eyes and listened to the sounds of nature. They both imagined the PreWar time in which trees dotted every street in suburban neighborhoods and entire parks were dedicated to the tall magnificent beauties. Amelia imagined being able to just spend her days laying in the grass, smelling roses and watching leaves dance in the wind before breaking off and cascading to the ground in soft intricate swirls.

They asked to stay the night in Oasis which Father Birch graciously allowed them to do so. They set up their little camp in the front area of the little patch of forest. Dogmeat appreciated the fresh water more than he appreciated the fresh air and foliage. Amelia and Butch chatted over shared pre cooked mole rat and whiskey, laughing and joking with each other. They discussed the weirdness of the people who ran Oasis, the twigs and leaves decorating their hair and clothes. Amelia grabbed a handful of stray twigs she found scattered on the ground and stuck them in her hair, posing in a goofy manner, her hands framing her face. 

“How do I look, Butch?” She asked, turning her head to the left, framing the other side of her face. Butch looked at her, no emotion readable on his face. 

“With your eyes, Nosebleed.” He spoke in a deadpan way, his face blank as a board. They fell silent for a few moments before Amelia burst into loud laughter, falling onto her back and rolling on her back. Butch sat dead pan for a few more moments before snorting loudly and throwing his head back and letting out a loud laugh, his arm wrapped around his stomach. 

“You’re so stupid, Butch!” She squealed, kicking her feet against the ground and kicking up dirt into the air. Dogmeat tilted his head and perked up his ears before getting to his feet and trotting over to Amelia. He ran his tongue down her face and pawed at her stomach, giving her a confused whine. Amelia giggled and sat up, rubbing her hands behind the mutt’s ears. Both of them cleaned up from their dinner before crawling into their bedrolls, Butch wrapping his arm around her as she rested her head against his chest. They shared one last kiss before setting their radios to Agatha’s station and closing their eyes. 

“Goodnight, Nosebleed.” 

“Goodnight, Tunnel Snake.” 

*** 

They sat under a small abandoned scavengers shack, a fire roaring in front of them. They sat in a comfortable silence as they ate and traveled through their thoughts. As Amelia began to clean up Butch spoke up as he twirled his switchblade between his fingers. 

“When we set out in the morning you wanna just head back to Megaton?” He asked, twirling the blade with his index finger and thumb. Amelia shook her head as she packed away pots and pans. 

“Nah, I have a better idea.” She told him, leaving him with that and only that. He raised an eyebrow, skeptical of whatever plan she was planning to pursue. 

“Ya gonna tell me more, Nosebleed?” He inquired, flicking his blade in and out of its holder. Amelia shook her head then held her hand out, wiggling her fingers. 

“What?” He stated at her confused before looking down at the switchblade in his hand. He sighed and closed the blade before placing it in her open palm. She grinned and stood, shuffling over to one of the half collapsed racks inside the shack. She grabbed a large and empty metal box from the middle shelf and pulled it down before flopping onto the ground with a thud. Pulling off the top she flipped it over, using the base as a table of sorts. She laid her left hand down on the cool metal palm down with her fingers spread. Butch looked on, confused as hell but curious at her next move. She flicked open the switch blade which glinted orange with the fire near by. She grinned then began to strike the spaces between her fingers. After a few paces through she began to sing a little tune. 

“Ohhhhh, I've got all my fingers, the knife goes chop chop chop and if I miss the spaces my fingers will come off and if I hit my fingers the blood will soon come out but it's all the same when we play this game Cus that's what it's all about.” Her tune was too cheery and melodic to warrant the deranged lyrics she sung. Butch looked on in horror as she began to quicken her pace. “Oh chop chop chop chop chop chop chop I'm picking up the speed and if I hit my fingers my hand will start to bleed.” The last run through she went through lightening fast before pulling her hand from the metal box and slamming the knife through the base, slicing a large hole where the knife stood. Butch quickly yanked his blade out of the bottom of the box which he then kicked aside as he stashed his knife back into his pocket. 

“Who the hell taught you that?” He asked, pulling a cigarette out of his pocket which he stuck between his lips with shaky hands, still anxious over what he just witnessed. Amelia pouted and slumped forward.

“Moriarty back in Megaton. He taught it to me when I first left the Vault. He said I was real good at it.” She pouted more and hugged her knees to her chest. Butch sighed and then ran a hand through his hair as he lit the bud hanging between his teeth. He inhaled smoke and tar, tasting nicotine as he breathed out, shaking his head. 

“God, you've been out here for too long.” He chuckled, taking another drag off the cigarette, this time puffing the smoke out in rings that spun in the air before fading away. “Remind me to keep you away from my knives.” He chuckled, flicking ash of the end of the bud, wiping it off of his pants once it fell. Amelia took offense, straightening up and frowning with her eyebrows furrowed together. 

“Hey, I shoot heavy guns but I can't have knives? That's unfair.” Her frown fell into a pout as she crossed her arms over her chest. Butch chuckled and put out the stub of his cigarette out of the ground beside him. 

“Yeah but you don't try to shoot yourself with those.” He chuckle, shaking his head. Amelia kept pouting as she pulled her knees to her chest. 

“I was just trying to show you something cool and now you're being a meanie.” She rested her head on top of her knees, squishing her cheek against it. Butch sighed and pulled his knife back out his pocket and pulled the metal box over in the middle of them. 

“Teach me how to do that then.” He grinned, laying his palm out flat on the cold metal box, staying mindful of the giant hole in the middle of it. For the next hour Amelia coached Butch on how to play what she called the Knife Game. She taught him the tune and the lyrics that went along with it and then how to stab between his fingers correctly. And he sucked at it. By the time he called it a night, little nicks and cuts lined his knuckles and fingers that oozed red. Amelia placed small bandages on all the small wounds before kissing his fingers which earned her a soft blush that crept across his cheeks. They laid out their bedrolls and crawled in the warm comfort of their sleeping bags as they huddled together near the crackling fire and drifted off to sleep.


	20. Chapter 20

“Nosebleed, where are we going?” Butch called, tired of walking to an unknown destination. Amelia just hummed and kept walking with the spring in her step. 

“You’ll see” She chirped in a sing song voice, taking a glance at her map as she trotted down broken asphalt. He groaned and kept trekking behind, dragging his feet in the dirt as they veered off the main road and into the dust. They traveled for another hour before coming upon a wooden door with a fallout shelter sign a few yards off and behind them. 

“Welcome to Vault 108.” She called out, throwing her arms out and grinning wide. Butch was not impressed. If anything, he was mad. The old Vaults were all abandoned and filled with ghouls and other monsters and reminded him too much of the hell of his old life. For her to have brought them all here was a waste of their time, energy and resources. 

“If you think I’m going in there then you’re nuts, Nosebleed.” He told her, crossing his arms over his chest, defensive. She dropped her grin and looked baffled, her eyebrows furrowing together. 

“W..What? I thought you would be excited to be here?” She sounded genuinely distraught at his reaction to her surprise. She loved delving into the old Vaults for the history, experience and the great loot they held. Butch frowned hard, his eyes piercing and angry. 

“No, this was a fucking stupid idea and I’m not going in.” His shoulders rose then fell as he shrugged at her as he shifted his weight to his back foot, a frown still melded on his face. Amelia’s look of distraught and confusion melded into anger to match his. She stuck her nose up into the air and crossed her own arms over her chest playing offensive against him. She shrugged her own shoulders before dragging her hands down her sides and planting them on her hips. 

“Fine, guess I’m going in without you.” She shrugged again before patting her leg and whistling. Dogmeat lept up from his laying position and trotted over, panting and tail wagging as he sat down at his master's feet. Amelia checked her ammo in her 10mm and her Chinese Assault Rifle, slung the latter of the two across the front of her chest and pushed her way into the old Vault. 

***

Vault 106’s experiment was drugs. Hallucinogenic to be precise which they released through the ventilation system. If they hadn’t gone crazy with the drugging it’s residence, Vault 106 would have kept on surviving just like her very own Vault 101. Luckily for Amelia, there was quiet a lot of medical supplies for her to loot. Unluckily for her the vault’s air system was still heavily pumping noxious gas through its ventilation panels. Amelia had not noticed she was getting drugged until her first trip came. She stood in the science lab, pulling a limited edition Vault Tec Vault Boy Bobblehead sporting glasses and a cocky stance from a shelf when her vision became tinted purple. She perked up and spun around to find her father standing there with his back to her. She raised an eyebrow and tilted her head in confusion. 

“Dad?” She called out, walking over to him slowly. He turned around and looked at her and smiled. He stared at her blankly for a few moments before his face began to twist clockwise, a smile still on his face. Amelia gasped and stumbled back as the twisting stopped and chunks of skin and muscle began to fall off of his face in rapid succession, ghoulifying him at a startling pace. She screamed as his face completely fell off, leaving him with a blank and red face. He then began to multiply, thousands of copies of her father without a face, just a bleeding blank canvas began to surround her. She pushed through the multiple versions of her father and the world went black. When she came to, Dogmeat was laying over her chest as she laid on the cold metal floor, staring up at the ceiling, her vision no longer tinted purple. She rubbed her temples as she sat up, patting the mutt’s head. She sat for a few moments, confused before pulling her bag around to her side and rummaging through the over filled pack. She searched for many moments before pulling out an old, crumpled and stained piece of paper. She unraveled the scribbled on paper that was filled with the Vault’s of the D.C. Wasteland. At the very bottom was Vault 106. Reading the quick few sentences she had scrawled down a few months ago as she listened to a Scribe she found out that the Vault was filling her with drugs and that’s what caused her vivid hallucination of her father’s weird deformity. Shaking her head, Amelia climbed to her feet, taking deep breaths as she stood fully, making sure she didn’t pass out again. She remembered the gas mask perched on Moira's front counter and was now regretting not purchasing it. As a medical professional, she thought that one trip was all she was going to have and now that her body was familiar with the drugs pumping through her veins via her lungs she was now immune to its effects. She was wrong. 

Amelia sat at a terminal, her face tinged green by the light of the screen. Dogmeat sat at her feet as she read the log entries still stores in the terminals database. Suddenly, within one blink the green turned to purple as the drugs hit her hard once again. 

“Hey, Nosebleed.” Amelia spun around in her chair before leaping to her feet. There stood Butch, blood leaking from both his nostrils as he smiled a sickening grin at her. As with the hallucination of her father, Butch began to multiply but instead of dozens of him only three split from him. Slowly they began to mold into all of the different Tunnel Snake members. First was Wally, then Freddie then Pauly who let out a sickening scream as rad roaches appeared on him, swarming his body as his screams began more blood curdling. The rad roaches slid off his body as his skin and muscle began to pool around his feet, leaving him as a skeleton. The bones of Pauly began to rush towards her, jaw wide open as he screamed. He knocked into her, sending her flying back, the wind knocked out of her. As she struggled to breath the rest of the Tunnel snakes appeared over her, noses pouring blood down their faces as they stared at her with hollow eyes. 

She woke with a scream, her vision once again gone of the purple tint. Sweat trickled down her back and forehead as her skin rose with goosebumps. She sat up, her head reeling as a tremor under her tongue sent her stomach churning as it threatened to empty itself. Closing her eyes and taking deep breaths, she willed herself calm. She then climbed to her feet and pulled her gun from her hip, checking the ammo stashed in the cartridge. Patting her leg, Dogmeat lept from his position in the doorway that he guarded. He trotted over and put his paws on her thigh, wagging his tail as he tilted his head. Amelia patted his head as he dropped onto his front paws and turned, leading the way out of the room. For a while, she had no hallucinations, convinced she was now immune to their effects. As she dove deeper into the Vault she was met with crazy dwellers who seemed to have gained a certain type of strength from being exposed to the psychoactive drugs for years. She pumped their chests and heads full of lead, wasting more ammo on them than she would a regular raider. They even managed to get a few swings in on her, once of them slices a deep gash in her arm, the other hitting her in the back of the knees with a pipe. Besides that, the rest of her travel through the Vault was peaceful. Then she reached the Overseer's office. When she walked on, she was greeted with a loud and crazed yell as the last survivor in the vault rushed at her with a baseball bat filled with bent nails. As she pulled her 10mm from her thigh holster and pulled back the hammer, her vision was coated purple again, her final trip rushing her. All 4 Tunnel Snakes appeared by the survivor, switchblades in hands. As the survivor rushed at her, so did the gang members. Soon, the survivor disappeared along with the other Tunnel Snake members, leaving her with Butch. In reality it was the survivor who was swinging at her but her hallucinating mind perceived it as her new husband who was swinging at her. She was hesitant to fire her gun on the man she so desperately loved, only dodging his attacks as best she could. He got a swipe across her hip, making her yelp in pain. She limped away as he rushed her. She spun around and the survivor hit her hard in the chest, sending her flying back. Her head hit the wall with a sickening crack. Firey pain wrapped its tendrils around her spine and brain. When she opened her eyes again, the purple tinge was gone from her view and now she vividly saw the survivor as who he truly was. He lifted his bat up, intending to strike her in the head. Her reflexes squeezed her finger around the trigger of her 10mm, sending a bullet spinning out of the chamber and flying in between the eyes of the survivor and out the back of his head, his brains and blood splattering across everything it could reach. He fell with a thud on top of her. She pushed him off and kicked him as far away as she could, her breath ragged, as her brain went into overdrive, sending her into a panic attack. Her entire body shook as her hair stood on end, sweat beading down every part of her. Her cheeks flooded with tears as she struggled to breath. Dogmeat sat at her feet and whined, licking her hands in an attempt to cheer up his master. It took her almost 45 minutes to regain her composer. When she was finally able to stand, every part of her body ached, feeling the bruises and scabs form on her wounds. It took her another hour to drag herself out of the vault, collapsing multiple times as her knees gave out on her, sore from the swing they took from a pipe. When she pushed out of the wooden doors to the Vault, she fell to dirt, her eyes stinging at the light of the sun. 

“Amelia! Jesus fucking Christ!” Butch watched as she fell to the ground, dust flying around her as she laid there unmoving. He ran over to her, sliding onto his knees as he pulled her head into his lap. He ripped the bag off of her shoulders and yanked things out of it, searching for a stimpak and water. He found one, throwing the cap off and pulling her arm into his grip. Smacking the place where her vein lies, he stabbed the needle into her bloodstream, pouring the medicine into her. Unscrewing the top to the water bottle he poured some into her mouth through her parted cracked and dry lips. She coughed and spit out the water, it dripping down her chin. Slowly, her eyes fluttered open, catching his sight and locking eyes with him. She looked up at him and he smiled, relief flooding his face. For the first time in 4 hours she looked at Butch and he wasn’t bleed and tinged purple. She flung her arms around his neck, squeezing him into a tight hug. He wrapped his own arms around her, burying his head into the crook of her neck. 

“God, Amelia, you had me so fucking worried.” He whispered in her ear, one hand holding the back of her head as he reveled in her warmth and softness. She sniffled, a few tears slipping down her cheeks. 

“I should have listened to you, Butch, god, I’m always so stupid.” She whimpered out, her nails digging into his shoulders as she choked out wimpy sobs. He shushed her, rubbing his other hand up and down her spine and shaking his head. 

“No, I should have gone with you. I just,” He pulled back and looked at her red, tear stained face. “What happened?” He couldn’t wipe the worry of his face as he posed her this question. Amelia swallowed hard and took a few deep breaths before diving into an explanation. They switched roles as she explained what happened and he bandaged her wounds. After she finished she just sat silent, picking the dirt and blood out from under her nails. Just as he tied the knot on the group of bandages resting on her arm, she spoke up again. 

“Let’s go back to Megaton for awhile.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact i wrote most of that while grocery shopping


	21. Chapter 21

“Hey everybody, this is Three Dog, your friendly neighborhood disc jockey. What's a "disc"? Hell if I know, but I'm gonna keep talkin' anyway! What rhymes with shoes? And often gives you the blues? That's right, it's time for the cashews! Okay, that, doesn't really rhyme... How about, news? I've been getting more and more reports of these mercenary maniacs from Talon Company, especially in the downtown D.C. area. If you see these hombres, steer clear. Whatever you have, they want, and they're not really into asking politely. Word is, these guys take all the contracts the other mercs won't. In short there's nothing they won't do. So be careful out there.Until next time, this is Three Dog, OWWWWWWWWW! And you're listening to Galaxy News Radio! Bringing you the truth, no matter how bad it hurts. Up next is Roy Brown telling us about that “Mighty, Mighty, Man.” ”

Amelia and Butch sat on their couch in their house in Megaton, Galaxy News Radio blasting through the juke box on the second level. Butch sat up and stood, heading for the second level. 

“How come we ain’t never dealt with no Talon Company?” He called as he went rummaging through some drawers. Amelia gave a shrug that he couldn’t see, her hair draped over the back of the couch. 

“Cause no one is dumb enough to hire some mercs to try and kill us.” She called as she heard him slam a drawer shut and come trampling down the stairs. She opened her eyes to see him standing at the bottom of the stairs, a comb and scissors in his hands, a goofy grin spreading across his face. 

“The hell you doin’ with those?” She questioned, sitting up and raising an eyebrow at him. He crossed over to her and stood over her, his shadow casting over her body. 

“Last night you were complaining about how long you’re hair is so I thought I’d cut it for you.” He shrugged, acting nonchalant but secretly hopeful she’d agree to him cutting her hair. While he acted like he hated the job that was hand picked from him from the G.O.A.T, some days it was quiet relaxing to be a barber. Amelia clutched a fistful of hair, weary of letting him anywhere near her long locks. The last time Butch did anything to her hair he filled her shampoo bottle with red hair dye that almost permanently dyed her hair bright, fire engine red. It took her almost 3 months to wash all of the dye out and get her hair back to it’s beautiful soft chestnut brown. Yet, despite her weary attitude of him going near her long locks, it was getting to an unreasonable length where even pulling it up into a pony tail did nothing to shorten it. She sighed and leaned back into the couch, draping her hair over the back of it. 

“Go at it, Tunnel Snake.” She chuckled, closing her eyes as she heard Butch exclaim a soft yes before going to gather more supplies. He came back with a bowl, a few water bottles, her wooden nightstand and a rag. Draping the rag over the back of the couch, he cracked open each water bottle and poured one at a time into the bowl that sat atop the nightstand. As he proceeded to dampen her hair and comb out all the dirt and knots, he admired just how soft it was. Despite having lived out in the rugged Wasteland for 6 months, her hair was just as silky as it was when she was able to properly take care of it in the vault. Along with it’s softness, Amelia’s hair was a beautiful shade of brown. It was light brown with flecks of blonde and red which caught in the right light and shone brightly. Butch slowly cut away dead ends off of her hair, snipping off inches from her locks, stopping once her hair reached her shoulders. Pulling her head back, he snipped off the split and dead ends from her bangs, shortening them so they dusted across her forehead instead of covering her eyes. Once done, he pulled the rag from underneath her head and hand dried her hair, leaving it soft and dry. Amelia sat up and ran her hands through her hair before heading to the bathroom to check out her new hair do. She caught her reflection in the mirror, seeing her hair now hanging at her shoulders, light and soft. She smiled, running her fingers through her shortened locks and sighing contently. Crossing back into the living room, Amelia leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Butch’s cheek as he cleaned up the cut away wisps of hair that littered the floor and her nightstand. 

“Thanks, Tunnel Snake,” She grinned, pressing her nose against his cheek as he scooped hair into the bowl of water. He chuckled and ran his free hand through her soft hair. 

“Anything for you, Nosebleed, you’re lucky I didn’t dye it red again.” He chuckled again and went back to cleaning up.

*** 

Girdershade was this little shanty made up of two tin shacks placed up under a crumbling highway. They were greeted by a bug eyed, paranoid little man named Ronald and they then met a hyper active, nuka cola obsessed girl who went by the name of Sierra Petrovita. Inside her shack sat the most Nuka Cola memorabilia Butch and Amelia had ever seen. Sierra gave them a tour of her “Nuka Cola Museum.” and after the tour of her vast collection of banners, toy trucks and bar stools, Sierra gave both of them a frosty, ice cold Nuka Cola which went down smooth and tasted like their childhood back in the Vault. Afterwords she asked them if they knew about a wonderful product called Nuka Cola Quantum. When they admitted they did not, she went into a long winded explanation of it’s conception, production and rarity. She then began to beg the two of them to bring her 30 bottles of Quantum prices a single bottle for 40 caps. After doing quick math in her head, Amelia priced 30 bottles at 1,200 caps. She almost immediately shook Sierra’s hand, accepting the Nuka Cola Quantum challenge. Sierra was through the roof with happiness when she accepted, admitting that most people called her crazy and left. She then told her the best place to look would be the Nuka Cola plant which was located southwest of the Arlington Library on the west side of the Potomac river. that cut through D.C. As they exited Sierra’s little Nuka Cola shrine of a home. Ronald was waiting outside of her shack, fidgeting with his hands as he anxiously waited for them. He tried to cut them a deal which Amelia was not willing to do so instead, she turned on what little charm she had and convinced him that if he went and got a bunch of Quantum she would not only get Sierra to sleep with him but she would turn that into a three some, including herself too. Ronald went bright pink, his eyes going more wide and bug like before loading his shotgun and running off over a hill and into the horizon, never to be seen nor heard from again. At least by Sierra. 

They camped out in the middle of nowhere that night, staring up at the night sky filled with sparkling stars and comets. Dogmeat laid across their feet as they snuggled up in their bedrolls next to each other. Butch spoke up first, breaking the silence and snapping Amelia out of the sleep she had just slipped into. 

“Wait, do you remember all those glowing blue bottles in Paradise Falls we saw?” He asked, the gears rolling in his tired mind as he tried to make sense of snapshot memories he had stored away. Amelia nodded and yawned, still trying to fall back into dream land. 

“Yeah I do. We’ll get those after we head to the Nuka Cola factory.” She yawned once more and closed her eyes again, listening to the crackle of the fire and the soft violin music of Agatha’s station which she had flicked her radio station to during the night. Butch nodded and kept staring up at the flickering stars. 

“How much we makin’ off of this?” He asked, rolling a lock of her wavy hair between his fingers. Amelia was half asleep, her head drifting to one side as she barely picked up what he had asked her. 

“1,200 caps.” She mumbled, finally falling back asleep, a soft and delicate snore escaping from her parted lips. Butch chuckled and kissed her forehead, pulling her closer, her head resting on his shoulder. 

“Yeah, goodnight to you too, Nosebleed.” 

*** 

Ronald was found already decaying outside of the Nuka Cola factory, one arm missing which was presumably taken by a mole rat or something along that lines, his chest filled with bullet holes that sat ragged against his clothes with blood dried on his clothes and the ground beneath him. Stepping over him, Amelia and Butch made their into the Nuka Cola factory, fighting against security robots and Nuka-Lurks, a divergent species of Mirelurks that had been exposed to the flooded level of the factory which was filled with the strontium from the Quantum for years and began to glow purple. After overriding a personal assistant Mr. Handy, they gained not only 6 bottles of Nuka Cola Quantum but the shipping addresses of all the test samples of the radioactive drink. As they left, they also gained a recipe to another type of Nuka Cola called Nuka Cola Clear that was sadly never put into production because of the bombs that were dropped weeks before it was to be put into beta testing. Once out of the hell that was the factory, they read over the shipping report and found out the next three locations to head to. Paradise Falls was one of them where 5 bottles were stored, Chaste Acres Farm where another 5 were still loaded in the back of the delivery truck and finally at the Super Duper Mart near Megaton where 3 bottles sat on the shelves. First, they took the trek all the way up to Paradise Falls where since their massacre of all the scumbag slavers they were able to waltz right in, take all of the Quantum and medical supplies then move along. Chaste Acres Farm was filled with Raiders but the delivery truck made for great cover as they blew bullets into the hearts and heads of the drugged up raiders. Finally, they met more raiders as they cleaned out the Super Duper Mart, also crossing off one of the missions for Moira’s Wasteland Survival Guide, a book Amelia had promised to help with 4 months back but never got around to doing so. Once they were done, they had 19 bottles of Quantum ready to turn into that eccentric Sierra Petrovita all the way back in her little tin shack in Girdershade where they would turn in 19 bottles of Nuka Cola Quantum for 570 caps. 

 

***

“Men and ladies, boys and girls, prepare to be astounded, bedazzled, and otherwise stupefied! I am Three Dog, your master of ceremonies!Seems we've got - dadadadada - a bit of news, Just listen to this! God knows why, but those crazy kids from Vault 101 are scouring the Capital Wasteland for a unique brand of Nuka-Cola. It's called Nuka-Cola Quantum, and I believe it was made in limited quantities before the war. I've also heard it tastes like radscorpion shit and turns your piss blue. Or does it taste like radscorpion piss and turn your shit blue? Whatever. Talk about your slow news days, huh?Time once again for an important GNR public service announcement. We all know the dangers of radiation, but with the right precautions, you CAN prevent accidental death or even... eeeewww... ghoulification... Keep your eyes on those geiger counters, kids. Tick, tick, tickety means run your ass outta there, and then pop some RadAway for good measure. If you do need to head into the heat, be smart. Give yourself a nice boost of Rad-X first. Remember, only you can prevent human flesh fires. Up next, some music.Here's Danny Kaye and Andrew Sisters, crooning about - what else? - "Civilization"."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> nothing will ever haunt me more than finding out i drank 8 nuka cola quantums before the nuka cola challenge.


	22. Chapter 22

On their journey to find the blue glowing Nuka Cola Quantum, Amelia and Butch searched every shack, shanty and store they could get into. They were scouring the West bank of the Potomac when they happened upon a little town called Grayditch. It was empty and filled with smoke and far off crackling fire. With no other way to get to an old food station called Mama Dolce’s, they had to pass through the burning and abandoned town. Moments upon entry they saw a figure running in the distance and over the horizon. The closer it got, the more weary the both of them became, Butch pulled out his 10mm and pulled the hammer back, aiming at the figure charging towards them. Just as his finger twitched on the trigger, Amelia jerked his arm away. 

“Butch, wait! It’s a kid!” She yelled as she began make out the features of the small, frail figure running towards her. Once in arms length, she was able to see the person for whom it truly was. A young boy, no older than 8 years old with dirty blonde hair and ruined clothes came running at her with his arms wide open. The boy barreled into Amelia, wrapping his arms around her tightly as the force of his impact spun them around twice. Wrapping her arms around the shaking child, she knelt down, looking up at Butch who stood there, awkwardly and confused. 

“Those monsters…th-they’re gonna get me!” He sobbed into her shoulder, shaking like crazy as tears stained her vault suit. She pulled the kid away and dropped down onto one knee, resting her arms on her raised leg. 

“Those what? What’s the matter?” She asked, raising her eyebrows. If there was anyone in this world she would give her life to protect, it would be the children of the Wasteland. Not every child was lucky enough to grow up inside a steel Vault that was sealed by a 10 ton door. The children who were born and raised in the Wasteland were barely able to have childhoods and while the good parents tried their hardest to make sure they got to be kids, not every child was so lucky.

“Those...THINGS. They keep coming. They scare me! Make it stop!” He cried, holding his head with tears running down his dirty yet chubby cheeks that marked his youth. Amelia rubbed the kid’s shoulders in an attempt to sooth him. 

“Hey, hey. Calm down, it’s gonna be okay. I promise.” She told him, keeping intense eye contact with him. The kid sniffled, his whole body shaking as he looked at her with tears in his hazel eyes. 

“You won’t leave me like all the other grown ups? You...you can help me?” He stuttered, obviously scared out of his mind. Anger festered like a fire inside of Amelia’s chest at the thought of people seeing this kid and passing him by. A scared, abandoned kid being chased by some danger and people didn’t give him a second glance. The Wasteland may be hard but the people can be harder and not always in a good way. 

“I’d like to help but I need to know more, first.” She told him, nodding her head while keeping her hands firmly planted on his shaking shoulders. 

“Those…big things. They’re all over Grayditch and they killed everyone! Please, Miss, please find my pappa!” He shouted, tears flooding his face again in large drops as his shaking worsened. Amelia pulled the boy into her arms, rubbing his back in soft circles as she made soft shushing and cooing noises to calm him. She only felt sadness for the boy in her arms, knowing the exact feeling of a lost father. 

“I’ll go look for your father.” She told him, her voice like steel as she refused to let any raw emotion flood her mind. The boy’s voice hitched as he pulled away, hope filling his eyes, something, she could tell, hadn’t been seen in them for a long time. 

“Y-You will? Really? Oh, thank you so much!” He squealed, throwing his arms around her neck and squeezing her tight, sniffling as he hugged her with all the strength he could muster. “My house is the one closest to the huge sign and the old diner.” He told her as he broke away, wiping the drying tears from his cheeks. He wrung his hands together and begged, hope fleeing from his eyes which was easily overtaken by fear once more. “Please...find my pappa and make him come back.” He begged, his voice cracking as tears once more threatened to spill over onto his cheeks. Amelia nodded and stood at which point Butch took her place as the kneeling one, looking at the kid bluntly, showing no raw emotion towards the child. 

“Look, kid, is there anything else you can do that might help save some lives?” Butch asked, trying to pawn the kid out of anything of value he might have left. Amelia glared at him and kicked his shin, angry as he tried to get some sort of prize out of this grieving child. Surprisingly, it worked. The kid dug into his pocket and pulled out an old key that was probably once shiny and gold but had now faded with age. 

 

“You know, maybe this will help and maybe it won't, but pappa hid a bunch of stuff behind the old diner in a dumpster. He trusted me with the key and said it was for emergencies, but I bet he wouldn't mind you having it.” The kid set the key into Butch’s hands as he hesitantly let go of it. Butch grinned and stood, rustling the child’s already messy hair. Amelia sighed and shook her head at him, showing her disapproval for his actions. Rolling her eyes, she dropped the subject and moved on to a more pressing matter. 

“Listen, kid, before we head on into town, can you tell me your name?” She asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“Bryan. I’m Bryan Wilks.” He told her, swallowing hard as he looked up at her with furrowed eyebrows and sad eyes. Amelia nodded and sighed before whistling. Dogmeat hopped up at came trotting over, tail wagging as he sat down in front of her. She pointed at Bryan then the ground before saying the word guard. Dogmeat dropped to the ground and licked the shin of Bryan’s left leg, showing his loyalty to the child. Amelia slung the chinese assault rifle positioned on her back over her chest, gripping the stock of the gun with one hand as the other placed a finger near the trigger. 

“We’ll be back soon, Bryan. Stay here.” She told him as she turned on her heel and waved Butch along into the burning town of Grayditch. As they treked farther and farther into the town, fire and burning became more apparent. Once they got past the fences, they were met with one of Butch’s worst fears. Giant bugs. Huge ants scuttled across the town and Butch almost turned on his heel and ran all the way back to Megaton in one go once he spotted the enormous, hulking ants that were ransacking the town. Amelia had no struggle dealing with the huge bugs until one of them shot fire from their mouths. If she had moved a split second later, she would have been set ablaze and burned alive by the skittering ants. That’s when her fear of fire ants developed. Anxiety festered in her chest as she then understood why Grayditch was burning. After fighting through a barrage of fire spewing ants, they stood in silence except for the crackling of burning wood off in the distance. Turning in a circle, Amelia surveyed her surroundings, finding a block of houses in front of her and the diner placed to her left. After taking a quick walk around the entire building, she deemed it safe to enter the Wilks residence. Amelia swung open the door and smoke billowed out of the door and into the air as the distinct popping of fire echoed through the silent building. Dead fire ants greeted them as they crossed over the threshold and the dead body of Bryan’s father laid spread eagle across the living room floor of his house with dead fire ants surrounding him with burning logs casting shadows on the soot covered walls. Amelia felt her heart sink at the thought of breaking the news to the teary 8 year old waiting with Dogmeat on the outskirts of town. But it was something, that had to be done. Turning on her heel, Amelia headed for the limits of Grayditch, Butch trailing behind her, leaving the two in silence. Dogmeat spotted the two of them kicking up dust as they walked and hopped to all four feet, barking excitedly as they made their approach. Bryan also leapt to his feet, hopeful of good news to come. Oh, how that hope would be crushed. 

“Did you find him? Did you find my pappa?” He questioned, looking up at Amelia like she was the answer to all his prayers. Amelia got down on one knee once again, locking eyes with the small boy who seemed so young and fragile. Her tongue felt like led in her mouth as every second seemed to drag on for eons. Finally, she got the courage to tell the child in front of her the truth. Setting both of her hands on his shoulders, she looked down to gain her composure before looking up at him again. 

“Bryan, I’m sorry but, your dad’s dead.” The words seemed to weigh a thousand tons as they left her mouth. The first thing that filled Bryan’s eyes was shock, 

“He...he’s dead?” He stuttered out, his eyes wide with horror. After a few moments, the horror dissipated then suddenly turned into realization and disappointment. He sniffled and shrugged, looking down at the ground and shuffling his feet, kicking away a stray rock. “I guess I already knew. Besides, I’m too tired to cry.” He shrugged again wiping his nose with the back of his hand. Amelia sighed, feeling her heart ache as she stared at this lost, orphaned kid in front of her. When her father had left her alone in the Vault, she carried a constant feeling of dread and anxiety as sadness was always at the front of her mind with tears ready to spill over at any moment. Amelia though, had only lost her father, Bryan had no chance of just being able to find his father for he was lying dead inside of the house he had grew up in as a child. Forcing her sorrow back down inside of her, she swallowed hard before looking at him with a wide smile. 

“Listen, Bryan, you’ll stay with me until we not only get rid of those giant ants but find you a new home as well. You can call me Mrs. DeLoria.” She smiled at him, standing on her feet and grabbing his hand as she headed back to town. That night they made up camp in one of the locked houses. Bryan informed them no one had lived their for years and despite it’s long time abandonment it was in good condition. The living room held an intact couch, a stained, cigarette burned coffee table and a large wooden cabinet filled with liquor. Upstairs held a bathroom and a bedroom with two beds, one full size the other one a twin. The small kitchen held dining room table and chairs, a working stove and a fridge filled with a few miscellaneous food items. 

“Hey, Bryan, you like mac and cheese?”Amelia asked as she rummaged through the mostly empty fridge. Inside was a box of mac and cheese, a can of cram, what smelled like old rotting squirrel meat and two bottles of dirty water. They all sat at the table that night, sharing Amelia’s favorite meal as her and Butch told Bryan stories of their youth and their adventures, invoking smiles and laughs from the sad boy. They shared the stories of little league, fights, raiders, slavers and muties. Bryan went to sleep with a smile on his face for the first time in a long time. Amelia stood in front of the sink, rinsing the bowls with water from a nearby bottle as Dogmeat laid at her feet, liking the cheese from the bowls, pot and spoons. Butch came from upstairs, trotting into the kitchen and wrapping his arms around her waist. Resting his head on her shoulder, he sighed and swayed back and forth to a tune solely living in his head. Amelia pack away their dishes into her bag which sat atop the counter before yawning and stretching before cracking her back to soothe it’s protest against her standing. Before she could say anything, Butch swooped her up into his arms in one swift motion before trotting upstairs to the same room where Bryan sat sleeping. He tossed her on the bed before grinning and jumping onto the same mattress. It squeaked and creaked in protest against his harsh use of the long forgotten box springs. Yanking the covers over them, Butch switched his Pip Boy 3000 to none other than Agatha’s station before pulling Amelia into his arms and cuddling her. 

“Goodnight, Mrs. DeLoria.” He harped, making fun of her for her previous comment from earlier. She rolled her eyes and cuddled up to him, resting her head against his chest. 

“Yeah yeah, goodnight to you Mr. DeLoria.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it took me 7 tries to find marigold station the first time I ever played fallout 3


	23. Chapter 23

In the morning they shared bowls of mirelurk stew before Bryan informed them that the ants seemed to have been coming from the Marigold Station metro tunnel. Amelia left Dogmeat in the care of the sad child before her and Butch headed into said station. If there was anything she hated exploring in the Wasteland it was the Metro tunnels. They were crowded, dark and usually overrun with water. It was nearly impossible to stay silent in the tunnels for every noise made a huge echo that carried down for miles. Any and all of the enemies that filled the station were always alerted to danger making their job harder. Super mutants, mirelurks, mole rats and ghouls were all common enemies faced in the metro tunnels. Inside Marigold Station none of the previously mentioned adversaries were there, the only thing there were those damned fire spitting ants. As they dove further and further into the tunnels, they came across a nasal voiced scientist named Lesko who was oblivious to the plights of the residence of Grayditch above his head. After explaining the situation on the surface world, Lesko stuttered and fidgeted as he figured out something to do to right his wrongs. He told them to kill the guardian ants in the hatchery but to not harm the Queen. Amelia had a different idea. Once in the hatchery, a terminal sat near the docile Queen ant. Once the guardian fire breathers were dead, Amelia hacked into Doctor Lesko’s hatchery terminal. Inside the terminal, there were two options for destruction. One, was an inhibitor pulse which would wipe out all of the fire ants on the surface. The other one was an option to destroy the Forced Evolutionary Virus sample that was used to create the hell creatures. Amelia chose both options. Once each command was accepted, she went into the final stage of her plan. Ripping a grenade from her belt, she launched the thing at the Queen ant which after a few seconds, blew the legs off of the giant fire breathing bug. The rest was a piece of cake. A few shots to the head exploded the Queen’s brains all over the cave walls and left her as a enormous rotting corpse. They traveled back up to Lesko’s lab where he freaked out over the death of his colony. Luckily, with her years of science and medicine as well as her months spent interacting with the people of the D.C. Wasteland, Amelia was able to convince the mad scientist that the death of the Queen was the best for humanity. Not only did Lesko buy her convincing argument, he then proceeded to reward the both of them for their good deeds. He offered two perks that would give them a single quality of an ant, Ant Might and Ant Sight. Whichever Amelia chose, Butch got the other. She chose Sight, leaving him with Might, which was surprisingly the one he was hoping for. After saying goodbye to the crazy doctor, they headed back to the surface and back to Bryan Wilks. 

They unlocked the door and in the living room sat Bryan, reading an old world book he had found on a shelf with Dogmeat sitting at his feet. Upon entering, the mutt jumped to his feet and happily trotted over, wagging his tail in excitement over their return. Bryan shut his book and hopped up, walking over to Amelia and Butch. 

“I got rid of all the ants, Bryan, the town’s safe.” She smiled wide, proud of her accomplishments and perseverance through the hell of fire spitting giant ants. Bryan smiled at her excitedly before some realization hit him and his smile faded. 

“Gee, thanks Mrs. DeLoria. Guess you’ll be on your way.” He looked down at his feet, disappointed for some reason she couldn’t quiet think of. Then it hit her. She went to go open her mouth but Butch cut her off 

“Hey, kid, we can’t leave you here all by yourself. You got some family somewhere or somethin’?” He asked, raising an eyebrow as he palmed a cigarette out of the front pocket of his Vault suit. Bryan looked up at him and nodded, tears flying off his cheeks. 

“Y-Yeah. I got some aunt up in Rivet City. You gonna take me there?” He asked, sniffling. Amelia looked at him and her eyes went wide as she connected some dots in her memories. 

“Wait, is your aunt named Vera? Vera Weatherly?” She asked, looking at his hazel eyes and dirty blonde hair. He was a spitting image for the bubbly hotel owner. Bryan looked surprised and he nodded, raising his eyebrows. 

“Yeah, that’s her! Aunt Vera!” He exclaimed, excited that she already knew of his other family members. 

“Well, alright Bryan, go pack your things and get ready cus we’re heading for Rivet City!” 

*** 

Rivet City was becoming their home away from home. If Amelia and Butch weren’t at the Citadel or in Megaton they could easily be found laying over in Rivet City on the way to either one of those destinations. Upon entering the floating rusted tub, they headed over to Gary’s Galley where they sat Bryan down on a stool, bought him some dinner and left him in the supervision of Gary and his daughter Angela. Once rid of the child, they headed for the Weatherly Hotel where they found Vera sitting near the front desk which held a Mr. Handy robot instead of an actual human. She sat reading “Lying Congressionally.” with a glass of whiskey in her hand as she skimmed the pages. Book marking her spot, she closed the front cover and looked up at the couple in front of her. 

“Well, if it ain’t the Wasteland’s favorite heroes. What can I get you two?” She asked, setting her book aside and standing, whiskey glass still in hand.

“Vera, your nephew Bryan lost his folks and needs a place to live. I was wondering if you could take him in. Your all he’s got left in the world.” Amelia smiled at her with sad eyes, hoping to earn some sympathy from the women. She did, easily. Vera smiled the same sad smile and nodded, setting her whiskey glass aside. 

“Oh, the poor dear. I know what it's like to be alone. I'd love to take him in. Don't worry, I have the means to keep him fed and healthy but most importantly, safe.” She smiled and nodded once more as she clasped her hands together and rested them against her chest. 

“Thanks, Vera. He’s down at Gary’s Galley.” Amelia jabbed a thumb behind her in the direction of the market place. Vera nodded and grabbed her book from the armrest of the chair. 

“I’ll go get some things ready then I’ll head down right away. Oh, I can’t wait to see the little man.” She grinned and turned on her heel before heading down the hall with a spring in her step. Amelia chuckled, shaking her head as she made her way down to the market place. She found Bryan laughing with another young child by the name of C.J. Young as they competed with each other to see who could blow the biggest bubble gum bubbles possible. As she approached C.J.’s bubble popped and coated her mouth, nose and chin which caused Bryan to erupt with laughter which popped his own bubble gum bubble.They wiped the gum off of their faces, putting it back into their mouths and proceeding to chomp on it. Amelia set her hand on Bryan’s back and he spun around, smiling wide with gum in between his teeth. 

“Alright kiddo, your Aunt Vera will be down in a few minutes. She’s excited to take care of you.” She smiled, patting the child’s back. Bryan smiled and threw his arms around her torso, hugging her tightly. 

“Thank you so much Mrs. DeLoria. I can't believe everything you've done for me. Most people would have kept on walking when I ran up to them screaming like I did.” He pulled back and shrugged his shoulders, his jaw still working away as he munched on the bubble gum in his mouth. 

“I’m just glad you’re safe, kid.” She smiled, rustling his hair with an empty hand. Bryan giggled then smiled at her somewhat sadly. 

“I wish I had something to give you for all the work you did, but I never really had much to start with. I hope you come back and visit some day.” He looked up at her before standing up on his stool and kissing her cheek. 

***

“Wake up, Wasteland! It's me, Three Dog, bringing you all the music and news your little hearts can handle. And here's... ME, hahaha, with the news!This, faithful listeners, is the story of a little boy. A little boy... named Bryan Wilks. You see, Bryan's from Grayditch, a small settlement that was recently overrun with overzealous giant ants. Bryan, sadly, was the sole survivor. That's where the kids from Vault 101 come in, and where our story, thankfully, gets better. You see, not only did our Mister and Miss Vault 101 stop the Ant problem, they also found little Bryan Wilks a new home in Rivet City. So if you see Bryan and his new parents, wish them all good luck. Oh, and 101? Nice work. And now, a super important Public Service Announcement. Listen kiddos, never forget the importance of periodic weapon maintenance. Rifle, pistol, police baton, I don't care which. If your weapon is falling apart, the only wasteland asshole it's gonna kill is you. So be smart. Salvage those parts and make repairs whenever you can. And now, some music, it's Roy Brown, singin' about the one, the only, "Butcher Pete"!"


	24. Chapter 24

Amelia and Butch slept the night over in Rivet City, staying for free at the Weatherly Hotel before doing the regular trading, chatting and helping as usual. But this time, help came to them. 

They sat at a table, enjoying their regular meal from Gary’s Galley, today it was mole rat steak and potatoes. Dogmeat sat under the table, gnawing on a raw mole rat bone and loving life. Amelia and Butch sat in a comfortable silence as they sipped Nuka Cola and chewed through slightly toughened steak. After downing the last few sips of his fizzy soda, Butch set down his fork and switchblade before leaning back into his chair. 

“You’d make a good mother, Nosebleed.” He told her abruptly. She was caught off guard and choked on her potato, coughs sputtering from her throat as she hit her first against her sternum in an attempt to clear her airways. 

“What the hell makes you say that?” She questions, baffled as she stared at him, her jaw slack and hanging wide open. He shrugged, pulling a cigarette out of his pocket and lighting it up with a strike of a match across his boot. 

“You were doin’ really well with Bryan and bein’ with the kid just made ya seem happy.” He breathed in deep, his cheeks going hollow as he sucked in smoke. He closed his eyes and held his breath for a few moments before spewing gray out of his nostrils like a dragon getting ready to breath fire. “I don’t know, you just got a way with kids.” He shrugged again, opening his eyes and staring at her. 

“Yeah, that’s why the kids always got checkups from me and not Jonas.” She chuckled and shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest. She looked around the hull of the rusting floating tub she sat in, taking in the people who occupied it. She realized the people around her, good or bad, were born and raised in this Wasteland whether their parents chose that or not and here they were, still living and breathing showing the true ability of human resilience. Amelia looked back at Butch and sighed. “When the hell are we gonna have the time to have kids, Butch? Huh? We’re practically the sheriffs of the entirety of the Capital Wasteland!” She scoffed and leaned back in her chair, throwing her hands in defeat as they smacked against her thighs. Butch breathed in the last few bits of his cigarette, putting out the bud against the heel of his boot before moving his leg from his lap to the ground. 

“If you really want to make it work, we’ll find the time.” He told her, reaching across the table and patting the back of her hand. Amelia smiled at him and looked over to see a man dressed in a fancy pressed suit with a mercenary traipsing behind him. The man in the suit was old, bald and wore glasses so thick they could deflect a bullet. He approached their table and stood there with his hands clasped behind his back. 

“I was wondering if you two were for hire.” He out right inquired, being very obvious in the fact that he found himself to be horribly important. Amelia rolled her eyes and stood, crossing her arms over her chest in defense. 

“Why? You lookin’ for somethin’?” She asked, narrowing her eyes at him. The man rolled his own eyes and sighed. 

“I’ve misplaced some very sensitive property.” He said slyly, hooking his old wrinkled fingers into air quotation marks when he said the word property. Amelia raised her eyebrows in a suspicious manner, wary of whatever mission this man was to propose. 

“Missing property? What kind of property?” She stepped back, leaning her weight onto her back foot. Butch also stood at that point, dancing his switchblade in between his fingers. The man sighed and tapped his cheek with his fingertips. 

“Hmm...how do I put this in a way you’ll understand? All you know of robots are those bucket of bolts-- those Mr Handshakers and what nots. Well...that’s not ALL a robot can be. You see, in the Commonwealth, we’ve made artificial persons. Synthetic humanoids! Programmed to think and feel and do whatever we need. And...occasionally they get confused and wander off.” He put it lightly, waving his hands in the air as he smiled with his non-existent lips. Amelia felt something twinge in the back of her mind. 

“Sounds like slavery to me. You sure they don’t “wander off” on purpose.” She glared at him, feeling disgust at the man who had the audacity to stand in front of her. He scoffed and chuckled at her, shaking his head. 

“Nonsense! This is a machine we're talking about. Can you enslave a generator, or a water purifier? Of course not. The same principle applies.But let's get back to your mission. You are to find this missing android. I've tracked him to somewhere here in the Capital Wasteland.He must have done something drastic, like facial surgery and a mind wipe, or else I would have found him by now.It will be no easy task. He may not even realize he's an android. Don't upset him by talking with him. Just come get me immediately. I'll handle it.” He smiled at her humbly, like he was doing some gracious thing. She felt anxiety fester in her chest as she looked at this slimy old man in front of her. She opened her mouth to speak but Butch cut her off, stepping in front of her. 

“I’m not sure how they do it up north, but around here, we get paid for our work.” He told him, grinning as he kept his switchblade spinning between his fingers. The old man shook his head and smiled. 

“I’m sorry, it must has slipped my mind. I have at the disposal advanced technology from the Commonwealth. I’d be willing to share some of it with you. Just think, you’ll be the envy of all your friends.” He held his hands open in question of acceptance. Butch grinned and held his hand open in for a handshake, accepting the deal. 

“Alright old man, we’ll find this robot of yours.” 

***

They slept once again that night at the Weatherly Hotel, half naked and tangled together, their limbs hooked around each other as they dreamed off far off lands and long forgotten memories with the soothing sounds of Agatha’s violin filling the empty silence that was only interrupted every so often by a loud snore that erupted from Butch’s throat. Dogmeat slept at the edge of the bed with their weapons locked and loaded at their bedsides, ready for any intruder. They slept through the night without any intrusions but the morning would be very different. Waking with the rising sun, Amelia readied herself for the day's trip to back to Megaton by packing, buying supplies down in the marketplace and packing for a long trip. As she bartered and sold supplies, she casually mentioned the possibility of an andriod living amongst those in Rivet City. Most people shook their heads or called her crazy, a few even suggested talking to some scientists but luckily someone turned something up. While trading over junk with Seagraves, she let it slip that she was interested with the synthetic humans and he actually turned something up. He handed her over a slightly battered holotape he had which he had labeled “Androids are real. No really!” He gave it to her for 3 pieces of scrap metal and a fission battery. Satisfied with her so called detective work, she headed back to the Weatherly Hotel to wake up Butch and Dogmeat. Halfway through her trek back to her room, she heard a loud hey echo down the hall. Alerted, she searched down the corridor in front of her, to her left and to her right only to find them void of any other Rivet City resident. She turned to search behind her and she was slammed against the wall, her head cracking against the metal which rang out with a sickening thud. Gritting her teeth, Amelia pushed at the figure holding her down but to no avail. Her eyes flashed open and in front of her stood a very beautiful women who just so happened to have her arm crushing Amelia’s windpipe. Brown skin, ash colored hair and honey eyes stared into hers with an angry hard look deeply embedded in them. 

“You’ve been rather busy lately. Asking questions. “Investigating.” So, is that it? You’re some kind of investigator? A detective for hire?” She put more pressure against her throat, choking her. Amelia’s eyes went blood shot as the women got more angry, her eyes getting darker with rage. “Or do you have some personal grudge against an innocent android who simply wants to be left alone? Please, tell me. I’d really like to know.” She growled, heat radiating off of her as she fumed with disgust. White lights exploded across Amelia’s vision as she began to gasp for air, her legs threatening to collapse under her. With a weak hand, she pulled at the woman’s wrist as she began to lose consciousness. The women then finally came to her senses and pulled her arm away, letting Amelia fall to the floor and suck in air, her lungs burning with every deep breath she took. When she finally regained her normal heart and breathing rate, she looked up at the women with watering eyes, her face hard and pained. 

“Look, who ever this missing android is, I just want to help. Okay?” She looked at her with wide eyes as she struggled to stand. The women held out her hand and pulled her to her feet, looking apologetic for her previous actions. She looked around her before leaning in close and speaking in a hushed voice. 

“Well... If that's true, then the first thing you need to do is halt your investigation. No more questions, no more searching. The movement I'm involved with, we help his kind escape their Commonwealth-imposed slavery. We help them... disappear. You understand?” She looked around once more before connecting eyes with Amelia. She nodded and rubbed her throat which had began to turn red from the pressure that was put on it moments before. 

“What would you have me do then?” She asked, her voice hoarse and raw from being deprived of air and crushed. 

“You really want to help? Take this. It's an internal component from the very android you're searching for. Don't ask how I obtained it.”The women then pulled out a metal component. It was red with some product numbers on the side of it painted in white with two steel prongs on the end. She slipped the component into Amelia’s pocket with a quick flick of the wrist. “Present it to Doctor Zimmer here in Rivet City. Tell him the android is dead, and that was on the corpse. He'll believe you. Do that, and Zimmer will go back to the Commonwealth, and leave that poor soul alone. Do that, and you'll have saved a man's life.” She locked eyes with her with a desperate expression on her face. Amelia set her palm over her pocket, feeling the heavy metal sit in her pocket. She nodded softly and the woman’s face was flooded with relief. The women nodded one last time and went to go walk away but Amelia grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. 

“Wait! I wanna know who performed the surgeries on the android. I’m a doctor and I wanna know how a face transplant was possible. Please, I have to know.” She pleaded with the women who sighed and looked down at her feet for a few minutes before looking back at her. 

“Fine. The android's transformation was done by a man named Pinkerton, here in Rivet City. He's hidden down in the broken fore section of the ship.” She patted Amelia’s shoulder before smiling a tired smile and disappearing down a corridor. She rushed back to her room where she found Butch just finally waking up. He trotted over and smiled at her, wrapping his arms around her waist. 

“Good morning, kitten.” He purred in her ear, kissing her neck softly with lazy pecks. She pushed him off of her and dove for their bags which her stashed under their bed. Butch stood in a confused daze, she never rejected his affection let alone his sweet kisses in the early hours of the dawn. “Hey, what’s wrong?” He questioned as she shoved the recently bought ammo and holotape into her bag. She stood and hooked on her thigh holster, sticking her 10mm into it before slinging not only her bag but her chinese assault rifle over her shoulders. 

“Get dressed, we’re going to find a ghost.”


	25. Chapter 25

They traveled to the broken bow of Rivet City. Finding no way to get across and seeing no above level doors, Amelia pulled out a bottle of Rad-X from her bag, rationing out a heavy amount for both her and Butch. Stripping off of their bags, they threw back their radiation medicine before pencil diving into the radioactive water below. They swam through flooded corridors, surfacing at the last moments to gasp for air, their hair drenched and their clothes soaked. Once they reached a slightly less water logged area of the broken bow, they were met with mirelurks, some of Amelia’s most hated mutated animals the Wasteland had to offer. After fighting off the mutated crabs, they trekked through hip high water filled corridors. Amelia picked through a lock that creaked open to the bottom floor of a doctor’s lab. Surgical currents blocked off two gurneys and machines with working light boards that held illuminated x rays. A set of stairs led up to a second level. Next to the rusted steel stairway sat a bar littered with medical and technological supplies along with two terminals, only one of which worked. 

“Doctor Pinkerton?” She called out, holstering her gun on her thigh and looking around. The medical equipment around her was surprisingly in good condition and at a high technological level for being out in the Wasteland. She heard rattling and crashing from above as an older man around his mid 50’s came scrambling down the stairs. 

“How the hell did you get here?” He asked, reaching the bottom of the stairs. As he stood within arm's length, Amelia got a good look at the elusive man. He stood with a bit of a stooped back, a full head of hair sat atop his head despite it’s gray color. Deep wrinkles sat in his skin and his clean clothes showed years of solitude away from the true dangers of the Wasteland. The man shook his head and stumbled over to behind the bar, crossing his arms over his chest. He scoffed and jutted his head up in a air of arrogance. “Well, I supposed you both can’t be all that bad if you made it this far without dying.” He then slammed his hands down onto the counter, syringes and papers scattering to the floor. 

“Now this is the part where you tell me what the hell you’re doing bothering an old man who obviously wants to be left alone.” He snapped at them, his eyes squinting into a glare as the loudness from his outburst had caused Amelia to jump back a good foot or two. Her lack of instant response annoyed Pinkerton. “Get on with it already!” He hollered, slamming his hands once more on the dull metal. Amelia disliked his quick to anger personality and his obvious recluse life style. She leaned forward and dropped her own hands onto the bar with a loud bang, her patience running short with the old hermit. 

“Let’s discuss the facial reconstruction and mind wipe you did for the android.” She grinned sarcastically, interlocking her fingers together and resting her chin on top of them. Pinkerton acted dumb, rolling his eyes and scoffing at her as he folded his arms over his chest. 

“What’re you talking about, woman? I don’t know anything about any of that, and a what-did-you-call-it? An android? What’s that?” He raised his eyebrows and shook his head in disbelief. Amelia sighed and stood up straight, pulling out her gun and slamming it onto the table, making a louder bang than either of their palm slams echo through the broken hull. 

“Let’s just say it's in your best interest to tell me what I want to know.” She grinned a dark smile that unsettled even her. She was fed up to say the least. In the past 24 hours she had been made a mockery of, thought of as nothing but a fool, choked out, yelled at, cut by mirelurks and now she was being outright lied to. To be considered a Herald of Tranquility by the people of the Capital Wasteland, patience was something that came easy to her but today, she had forgotten what that word had even meant. Her hand gripped the handle of her gun, her knuckles going taught and ghost white as her thumb lifted back the hammer. Pinkerton lifted up his hands and stood up straight, shaking his head. 

“Fine, whatever. This android, calls himself Harkness now, comes in and wants a memory job. I took new memories and replaced his old ones. Don’t believe anyone’s done that before. Certainly not down here. That Commonwealth tech isn’t all that fancy when it comes down to it.” He shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest. Amelia took a deep breath and took her death grip off of her gun, sliding it back into it’s holster on her thigh. Pinkerton then set his hands onto the steel bar, leaning for with a grin of superiority on his face. Butch stepped into the conversation, butting into the talk of androids and surgeries. 

“Wait, Harkness? The asshole head security guard?” He asked, thinking of the man, apparently androids, rude remarks toward Butch when they first found the floating rusted tub. Pinkerton nodded, still grinning.

“The very one. I’m also the only one in the wasteland with the skill and the nerve to perform facial surgery. That android flesh ain’t so different than ours.” He shrugged, still looking arrogant. Amelia leaned forward and held her hands out with palms facing skyward. He looked at her with a questioning look and a raised eyebrow. Amelia wiggled her fingers and grinned, eyebrows raised. Pinkerton scoffed and rolled his eyes. 

“You want proof? I documented the whole thing. So I could rub it in the face of Doctor Li when I need to rankle her feathers. I hate that snooty bitch.” He scowled, setting his arms over his chest once again. She understood his frustration with Doctor Li, remembering the woman’s unpleasant attitude when Amelia posed questions about her father. She sighed and rubbed her temples, making it clear that she was unimpressed with his bitter attitude. 

“I’m sorry you don’t get along with Doctor Li but we were discussing the android.” She leaned forward again, her arms wide open with her hands ready to receive information. 

“That witch ruined my life, but you’re right. Who gives a crap about any of that. You want your precious proof.” He ducted below the bar counter, rummaging through the cabinets. Moments later he reappeared with arms filled with a holotape and a stack of pictures. “It’s all in my computer; here’s the password. See for yourself, ” He handed her a piece of paper with messily scrawled writings on it, “Hell, just take these pictures and this holotape. Straight from the synthman’s lips.” He threw the pictures and holotape onto the counter, resting his palms on the steel. He turned to go and disappear upstairs but he caught himself, spinning back around. 

“Just don’t go telling Harkness though. He won’t believe you anyway. And you really don’t want to see him upset. He can be a bit...inhospitable.” He shuttered at some previously stored away memory that rose to his current ideas. While satisfied with her gained information on the face transplants and memory wipes, she was still displeased with the warning to stay away from Harkness. 

“Harkness should be told. You’d want to know if you were an android.” She retorted, making a case for herself. Pinkerton scoffed and took a few more steps closer. 

“Maybe I am! Maybe I’m gonna have my android army rise up against you and your human ilk!” He spoke with deep sarcasm in his voice, his eyebrows furrowed in anger. Amelia rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her hair. Sensing her annoyance, Pinkerton broke into a grin and began laughing. 

“Sorry...Oh...sorry, I couldn’t resist.” He shook his head, somehow being transferred into an amazingly better mood. “I suppose you’re right. But don’t worry, I didn’t really wipe his memories. I just buried them but you can get them back.” He grabbed the same piece of paper with his terminal password and pulled a pen from his pocket, scribbling something on it. 

“All you need to do is use the recall code. Just say to him “Activate A3-21 Recall Code Violet” and that’ll activate the hidden subroutines.” He handed the piece of paper with the code on it to her and smiled at her, setting his hands on the counter. Amelia smiled and gathered the pictures and holotape into a neat pile before posing one last question. 

“Alright, Doctor Pinkerton, one last question then I’ll leave you alone forever. Why’d you help the android?” She asked, leaning forward once more. Medical practices may have been her forte in life but technology fascinated her to no end and this android’s story combined both of those. Pinkerton looked at her with the utmost surprise and he chuckled. 

“Ha! What do you think? I wanted to crack open that Commonwealth can opener to see what was inside. There’s stuff in there I’d only heard about and even then I didn’t believe it. I can see why that Zimmer feller wanted him back so bad.” He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head before turning and disappearing upstairs. She then spent the next hour listening to holotapes, comparing pictures and reading Pinkerton's logs. Once satisfied with the information she learned, she packed away everything in her pockets before waking the sleeping Butch who had planted himself on top one of the gurneys for a nap. They then made their trip back to the rest of Rivet City. They found a locked door that led to the outside of the broken hull. Luckily, the lock was beginners level easy and was quickly forced open. Once on the outside of the cracked off bow, they stood on the edge of the curled steel, their feet halfway over the siding. Each of them took deep breaths before jumping to the other side. Both Butch and Amelia thanked God out loud when the landed on the other side safely. Passing through the door the excited 2 hours previously, the found their stuff guarded by a patient Dogmeat who was more than ecstatic to see them. Once reclaiming all of their gear they sprinted off to the market place to find Harkness. It was midday and busy as hell in the middle of the ship with almost every resident out to eat or trade supplies. They found Harkness standing at the top of the stairs over looking the entire trading station. Amelia approached him, breathing heavy from her sprint to find him. He looked at her and smiled impatiently. 

“Hi there doll, I’m a little busy right now. Is there a problem?” He asked, setting his hands on his hips and rotating his pelvis forward. Her heart pounded against her chest as she rummaged through her pockets to pull out a holotape and a stack of before and after pictures. 

“I...I’m not sure how to put this but...you’re not who you think you are.” She stammered, clutching the photos and tape in her shaky hands. Harkness gave her a funny look of confusion. 

“What’s that supposed to mean, huh?” He asked, getting defensive. He scoffed and ran his thumb over his bottom lip before waving his arms out in a wide arc across the front of his body. “Look, kid, I don’t have time for an existential debate. And I’m not interested in whatever religion you’re peddling.” He chuckled in disbelief before crossing his arms over his chest. Amelia sighed in annoyance, running her hands through her hair. 

“This isn’t an existential debate. You’re a robot from the Commonwealth.” She informed him, still clutching onto the tape and pictures in her hands. Harkness’s eyes went wide with disbelief. 

“Excuse me? Look, kid, you have exactly five seconds to explain what you’re trying to do here or you’ll be leaving Rivet City by way of the nearest port hole.” He chewed on the inside of his cheek and glared at her, already done with whatever she had to offer. Amelia shuffled with the pictures and holotape, waving them in the air. 

“ The facts will speak for themselves. I have pictures and an audio testimony.” She waved the evidence in his face, to which he pushed her hand out of his face. He crossed his arms over his chest and chuckled, rolling his eyes. 

“All right, I'll humor you. But this is impossible. I can’t be a robot! I’m a human being ..I breathe, I eat. Hell, I cut myself shaving this morning. I was bleeding! Robots don’t bleed!” He rubbed his jaw where an already heeling scrape sat on his defined jaw line. He reached out and held his hand palm facing skyward. “Let me see those pictures…” He took the pictures from her hands and looked at the before and after versions of himself. He scoffed and shook his head, putting both of the photos in his left hand.

“You're trying to tell me this is a before and after picture of some kind of face surgery? This doesn't prove anything. All it proves is someone took a picture of me, and took a picture of some other guy.You'll need more than this, though I can see why you thought it was important. But stop worrying about it. I'm sure this is just some kind of joke.” He chuckled and handed her the pictures back, shaking his head like it was all some prank against him. Amelia bit her lip before slapping open the holotape port on her Pip-Boy, slipping in the holotape and closing the port before cranking up the volume all the way up and hitting the play button. 

“My designation is A3-21. I'm a synthetic humanoid from the Commonwealth, and I'm about to undergo a memory transfer.I'm here at Rivet City, where I've already had my face altered to look like someone else.I'm still getting used to the sound of my new voice, but soon I won't even remember what I used to sound like.I'm recording this at the request of Pinkerton, who performed the surgery and will do the memory transfer It will be a final testimony of the man I once was... and still am, for the moment.I want to live my own life, on my own terms, as my own man. I used to work for the Synth Retention Bureau of the Commonwealth.But I'm done with that life. I'm through with being someone's property. I am not malfunctioning! Since when is self determination a malfunction?When this is all over, I will be someone else. It's the price I pay for my liberation. My death is a sacrifice for my rebirth. Perhaps I'll fade into myth as "The One That Got Away" and fuel further rebellion. But I'd be lying if I said I was doing this for selfless reasons.I'm scared as hell, and running away is the only option I have.”

The tape ended and Harkness stood their with uncertainness plastered on his face, his confidence having wavered. He shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. 

“I admit that sure sounds like me. But someone might have doctored that up somehow.” Amelia sighed and threw her hands into the air, frustrated with his unwillingness to understand. 

“ You were made to look and act human. But you’re not. The evidence proves that.” She fumed, smacking the pictures in her hands. Harkness shook his head and sighed deeply. 

“I'll admit, this is pretty convincing evidence, but it doesn't make any sense. How can this be possible.” He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, moving his arms from his chest to planted firmly on his hips. Amelia closed her eyes and took a deep breath, swallowing hard as she finally decided to use her last resort. 

“Sorry Harkness, but this is the only way. Activate A3-21 Recall Code Violet.” She opened her eyes as the man in front of her groaned loudly, clutching his head in his hands. Amelia shot her eyes open and there stood Harkness with wide eyes as one hand clung onto the fabric of his shirt while the other was cupped on his forehead. 

“My God, I... I remember. I remember it all. From before. Zimmer. The Commonwealth. The Institute. My God, all those runners I brought down...You... You made me remember. Why? How? I... Never mind... I just... My God... What am I going to do? My life, everything, it's all a lie…” He looked at her with tears streaming down his cheeks. He stood up straight almost instantly and wiping away his tears from his cheeks. Amelia smiled sympathetically. 

“Don’t worry, Harkness, your secret is safe with me.” She smiled softly and patted the synth man’s shoulders. He nodded softly before pulling the laser rifle off his back and handing it to her. 

“Here's a little token of my gratitude. Best weapon I've ever had, and I've had it forever.” He smiled at her before hugging her, a little too tight for Butch’s liking as he cleared his throat loudly which signaled it was time for Harkness to let go, which he did. Amelia smiled at him and patted his shoulder one last time before turning on her heel and heading down the stairs


	26. Chapter 26

Amelia threw open the door to the science lab, storming down the stairs in a tornado of false confidence. 

“Doctor Zimmer!” She called, hopping down from the last step and looking around. The decrepit old man came stumbling from a room down the hall with his merc guard behind him. 

“Yes, yes, what is it you hollering imbecile?” He grumbled as he approached her, looking at her through low lying glasses on his nose. Amelia dug into her pocket and pulled out the android component Victoria Watts had given her earlier that morning after she choked her. She set the internal android piece in the man’s wrinkled hand and grinned. 

“The android is dead. See, here’s an internal component.” She grinned a wide smile that spread from ear to ear. Zimmer’s eyes went wide. 

“What? This is a Neuro-Servo... Unique to the A3-21... I... And you say you got this from his corpse?” He asked holding the component. Amelia nodded and kept grinning wide, setting her hands on her hips. Zimmer sighed and dove into his pocket. “I suppose there's no other way you could have obtained it. Well... damn it. I was afraid this would happen, out here in this, this...Wasteland.Well. Here's 50 caps for your troubles. Try to buy yourself an education out here in this hell. Good day.” He handed her the 50 caps before turning on his heel and beginning to shuffle back to his office. Amelia looked at the small bag of caps in her hand before a flip switched within her and sent her into a rage.

“Hey! You said you would share Commonwealth technology with me! Not this shit!” She threw the bag on the ground and drew her gun from her thigh. “I could pull this shit from the cushions of my couch! I did this for you because I wanted to learn of the great advances done up North!” She screamed throughout the science lab, causing head turns and clattering of equipment. Zimmer turned around and shook his head, going to speak but Amelia cut him off. 

“You’re a good for nothing dirty slaver who fucks over innocent androids for their own personal gain.” A loud crack burst through the science lab and within a blink of an eye, Zimmer was on the ground with giant crimson flowers blooming across his chest with two bullets lodged in his unbreathing chest. No one spoke a word, the scientists didn’t scream out or run for security they just turned their backs and went back to their experiments. Amelia spit on the face of the dead man before turning on her heel and heading out of the lab.

***

6 months ago Amelia was pushed out into the Wasteland a scared, lost child looking for their father and wishing to return back to the safety of her steel vault protected by a 10 ton door. Yet, as those 6 months carried on, she changed into an experienced fighter who could fire a 10mm with scary accuracy. And while she didn’t hesitate to fire a bullet into the head of someone who wronged her, she was D.C’s Wasteland Messiah who not only gave the people free, clean water but saved them from Super Mutants and even helped make sure they got married to the one they truly loved. 

The sun was high in the sky which was a bright cerulean with giant swirling fluffy clouds. Galaxy News Radio buzzed loudly from her and Butch’s Pip-Boy’s as they walked down a broken street. Dogmeat barked a few yards off, signaling his approach. Amelia turned and smiled, kneeling down. The mutt came bounding over, wagging his tail heavily. 

“Come on, boy.” With that, she stood, gun in her left hand, Butch’s hand in her right as they walked into the sunset.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this thing all the way through. It was made in a span of 28 days, made with blood, sweat, tears and a lot of skipped naps. I know it's not the most fantastic ending but the fic means a lot to me. Thank you for reading...


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